Arsenal have a plan to lower their wage bill.
Arsenal have reportedly submitted a plan to their players’ PFA representative, Hector Bellerin, which details how they could bring in wage cuts amid the coronavirus crisis.
The Gunners, like many other clubs, will be facing an uncertain financial future at the moment due to the lack of games being played while the season is postponed to deal with the current pandemic sweeping across the globe.
The lack of money from matchday ticket sales is bound to hit everyone hard, and the Daily Mirror have reported on Arsenal’s proposal to their players that could bring wages down whilst also giving them an incentive to qualify for the Champions League once the 2019/20 campaign can be resumed.
The report explains that Arsenal’s five-point plan, submitted to Bellerin, is as follows:
- A 12.5 per cent pay cut for 12 months from April 2020 to March 2021
- The full amount is then refunded if Arsenal qualify for the Champions League
- If Arsenal do not qualify for the Champions League, no money is returned back
- If Arsenal fail to qualify for the Champions League, but qualify for the Europa League the cut becomes 7.5 per cent
- If the season does not finish and/or Arsenal does not get full money from broadcasters then they will ask the players to find a “further solution”
It will be interesting to see if our players accept this, especially as our chances of qualifying for the Champions League don’t exactly look great, meaning they’re likely to be simply accepting a pay cut. That said, Europa League qualification might be more realistic and that would mean a smaller pay cut.
Either way, we are where we are and it would be good if the players could recognise the contributions they could make to help others in lower-paid jobs at the Emirates Stadium in this difficult time.