Toulon (AFP)

Didier Lacroix, president of the Stade Toulousain rugby club, admitted that he could ask his players to donate their salaries to help the club cope with the coronavirus crisis, in an interview with the economic daily La Tribune .

"All solutions will be considered depending on the dangerousness in which we have plunged this judgment," said Thursday the President of Toulouse, questioned about this wish to donate wages already formulated in other sports clubs.

However, for Lacroix, before arriving at this decision "it is necessary to know the exact duration of confinement and stopping" of the competition.

"Very concretely, we do not know the degree of damage that this pandemic will cause in the economy, our industry and our own club," he said.

The economic loss per match not played by the outgoing champion, current 7th in the Top 14, is "from 250,000 to 350,000 euros in net worth" for a Top 14 match at home and "around 850,000 euros" for the quarter-of- European Cup final against the Irish province of Ulster, scheduled for April 5 at Ernest Wallon, according to the president.

But, to date, despite the uncertainty about the resumption of competitions, no one has given up with only "4, 5 people" who have asked for reimbursement on "40,000 tickets sold" for the three matches (European Cup, Agen and Lyon) planned for Ernest Wallon, notes Mr. Lacroix.

"There is a huge dose of affect around the club," noted Lacroix, believing that the club is strong thanks to its partners, but that questions could arise about the attitude of a major supporter, the Airbus group " if the aeronautical market was called into question in our way of moving ".

"This group has always been by our side" but "Airbus' first mission is not to bring Stade Toulousain to life", noted Didier Lacroix, who does not imagine "not seeing the club disappear" from the map only for economic reasons".

Pending the recovery, like the Rochelais and Toulonnais, Toulouse players announced on Twitter that they have opened a kitty for their supporters to help hospitals.

© 2020 AFP