FC Barcelona announced taking steps to reduce the salaries of its players and employees, to reduce the economic damage caused by the spread of the emerging Corona virus (Covid-19).
Club officials decided - after a video meeting - to reduce the salaries of all professional players in Barcelona, led by Argentine star Lionel Messi - the best player in the world six times - and the coaching staff during the league break.
The Catalan club administration stated in a statement that "the current conditions impose a relatively low wage in the relevant contracts."
The statement did not reveal other details about the cuts and their value, and Spanish reports said earlier that the Barcelona administration had failed to reach an agreement with the players on reducing wages, after the players rejected a proposal by the administration to cut salaries by 70% during the period of stopping the competition.
The Barcelona administration took advantage of the Spanish law that allows companies to reduce or suspend contracts under force majeure, which applies to the current health crisis.
Spain imposed a quarantine on March 14, while allowing citizens to leave their homes to do important work only, and this period is expected to be extended after the first 15-day deadline expires.
Spain witnessed the second worst epidemic in Europe after Italy, and the number of deaths exceeded four thousand people, in addition to injuring more than 56 thousand.
The current crisis is expected to push the rest of the La Liga clubs to the behavior of FC Barcelona's approach in the days
Next, imposing a reduction in the wages of its members in order to reduce losses and maintain financial balances.