Chinese clubs set to cut salaries
Chinese football clubs look set to become the latest to cut player salaries as teams throughout world football attempt to offset the financial blow of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Lionel Messi鈥檚 Barcelona and Cristiano Ronaldo鈥檚 Juventus have both made similar moves, while Real Madrid players agreed to reduce their pay by as much as a fifth.
Players in the Chinese Super League, which has sprung to prominence by giving world-leading wages to foreign stars, were under growing pressure to follow suit.
The Chinese Football Association said that following talks 鈥 via video conference 鈥 yesterday with clubs, those in the CSL and the two divisions below will thrash out terms for a 鈥渞easonable鈥 reduction in pay.
The cuts will be backdated to March 1 and last until the new season begins. Latest reports say that will be late May at the earliest.
The CSL campaign was supposed to start on February 22 but was indefinitely postponed by the deadly COVID-19 outbreak, which began in China late last year before spreading worldwide.
鈥淧rofessional football clubs and investors generally face operational difficulties,鈥 the CFA said.
鈥淭he clubs鈥 calls for a moderate reduction in their financial burdens and reasonable salary reductions are strong.
鈥淭he epidemic has also had a huge impact on the development of global football.鈥
CSL clubs made headlines in recent years by luring big-name stars with eye-watering wages 鈥 Shanghai SIPG鈥檚 Oscar is one of the top-earning players in football.
The Brazilian attacking midfielder reportedly earns nearly US$30 million a year.
But the CFA has since brought in a number of measures to rein in spending and cool the Chinese transfer market.
鈥淩egarding the issue of salary reductions, the Chinese Football Association also communicated with FIFA several times and has received FIFA support,鈥 the CFA statement added.
Meanwhile, Southampton has become the first English Premier League club to announce that its players and coaching staff will defer part of their salaries as the pandemic shutdown continues.
In a statement yesterday the EPL club also said it would not be using the government鈥檚 job retention scheme.
鈥淭he board of directors, the first-team manager, his coaching staff and the first-team squad have agreed to defer part of their salaries for the months of April, May and June to help protect the future of the club, the staff that work within it and the community we serve,鈥 the statement read.
EPL players have found themselves in the spotlight during the crisis for resisting calls from the clubs to accept wage deferrals and cuts to reduce wage bills.
The players鈥 union, the Professional Footballers鈥 Association, has yet to agree to a cut and argued after a meeting with the EPL last week that reduced wages would lower tax revenue for the National Health Service.
However, EPL players on Monday launched the 鈥#PlayersTogether鈥 initiative themselves to generate and distribute funds to the NHS.
With no common approach being taken by England鈥檚 elite clubs, Southampton鈥檚 announcement could now put pressure on other teams.
Some clubs, notably Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United, have also been criticized for furloughing non-playing staff and taking advantage of the government鈥檚 job retention scheme which helps to pay a percentage of employees salaries, when their players remain on full pay.
EPL leader Liverpool reversed a decision to furlough some of its non-playing staff and club CEO Peter Moore apologized to fans after fierce criticism of the move.
Southampton said all staff not already deferring part of their salaries will receive full pay until at least June 30.
鈥淚n these unprecedented times we are dealing with many challenges to our business model and day-to-day operations,鈥 the South Coast club said. 鈥淭he situation is ever-evolving and we will continue to monitor and assess the impact to the club over the coming weeks before deciding any further action necessary.
鈥淓veryone at the club remains fully committed to the community we value so highly in Southampton.
鈥淲e will continue to offer our full support to the city of Southampton through the work of the Saints Foundation and provide any further assistance we can.鈥
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