Milan (AFP)
Like many European clubs before it, Juventus Turin announced Saturday that it would reduce the salaries of its players and coach Maurizio Sarri from "March to June", in order to moderate the impact of the new coronavirus pandemic on its finance.
"The economic and financial consequences of the agreement concluded (for the reduction of wages, note) will have a positive impact of 90 million euros on the financial year 2019/2020", estimated the Bianconeri, leaders of the Italian championship, at a standstill until April 3 at least.
The Piedmontese have several stars with substantial salaries in their workforce, including the five-time Ballon d'Or Cristiano Ronaldo.
Juventus added, however, that in the event that the season should end later than expected, the Turin workforce would then be paid more than usual during the additional months of competition.
Italy, the country hardest hit in the world by the Covid-19 pandemic, surpassed the 10,000 death mark on Saturday, alone accounting for almost a third of all deaths worldwide linked to the new coronavirus.
In this context, activity and sports competitions are stopped in the country. A final halt to the Serie A season could cost between 550 and 650 million euros, according to a KPMG audit.
The Juventus initiative joins those, similar, taken by many European clubs to relieve their finances. In Germany, players from Bayern Munich, Schalke 04 or Borussia Dortmund have agreed to reduce their pay.
In England, the leaders of the rugby federation (RFU) and the coach Eddie Jones will see their remuneration fall temporarily by more than a quarter.
© 2020 AFP