Barcelona Reaches Agreement With First-Team Players Over Another Wage Cut

Barcelona players have agreed to forego a part of their salaries for the second time this year as they look to get the club out of financial turmoil. The coronavirus pandemic has had a huge effect on the finances of the Spanish side as earlier in March, the first team had taken a pay cut which was reported to be around 70 per cent of their salaries at the time. Barcelona Face Bankruptcy if Players Reject Another Wage Cut As Coronavirus Pandemic Takes Toll on Catalan Giants.

According to a report from Cadena COPE, Barcelona players have agreed to defer their salaries in order to save the club €122 million (£109m/$145m). Further, the players have also agreed to let go of €50 million in bonuses for the season, which will be prorated by the club to the team over the period of the next three years.

Earlier in the year reports from Spain suggested that Barcelona must cut their wage bill down by €171 million before the start of the next year or filing for bankruptcy is a very real option for the club. However, the reductions will certainly see the Catalan team reach that requirement and bring some stability back to the club’s economic situation.

Barcelona were working on a new contract for players earlier in the year which saw stars like Gerard Pique, Frenkie De Jong, Clement Lenglet and Marc- Andre Ter Stegen agree on a reduction of their salaries while the remaining first-team members, who didn’t accept the pay cut at that time, are on board now.

Barcelona's wage cap was reduced from €650m to €370m by La Liga in the wake of the financial pressures caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The club’s latest figures showed the club had made a €96m loss and had racked up a net debt that had doubled to €480m.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 12, 2020 09:26 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).