ESPN and other outlets are reporting this morning that the soccer players of FC Barcelona, including megastar Lionel Messi, have agreed to take a 70% pay cut for the duration of the pandemic so that the rest of the organization’s staff can continue to receive 100% of their wages. This is no small sacrifice. Just the first-team players on Barcelona make $500 million per year combined.
In a statement, Messi, the team’s captain, indicated that the footballers will make additional contributions as needed.
“Beyond the reduction of 70% of our salaries during the state of alarm, we are also going to make further contribution to ensure that the employees can continue to be paid 100% of their salaries for as long as this situation lasts…”
Lionel Messi
It has also been reported that other football clubs in Europe are making similar sacrifices:
- Players on Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich, German professional teams, will forego significant portions of their salaries;
- Players on Juventus, based in Turin, Italy, will forego their salaries for four months, amounting to $100 million.
Bravo!