Football Club Affected Most By Covid-19
Worldwide soccer faces the possibility of losing several clubs to bankruptcy due to the Covid-19 pandemic. A decline in the multibillion-dollar transfer market and the possibility of defaulting on player transfer deals made before the suspension of the seasons are some of the biggest concerns. The Covid-19 has caused a strong economic worldwide collapse. This crisis is further aggravated in European territory, where the most important leagues in the world are succumbing to the pandemic with multimillion-dollar losses.
The Premier League, La Liga, and Serie A are the three leagues that have lost the most money worldwide. These three leagues would have more than 1,000 million euros of losses each, according to data from Transfermarkt. The English league has losses of 1,840 million euros and is the one that has lost most of all local European competitions. The Spanish followed with 1,170 million euros, while the Italian would have a decrease of 1,030 million euros. Behind appear the Bundesliga and Ligue 1 in losses. The virus has affected the football industry, forcing the interruption of activity. The future is unclear: closed stadiums, suspended tournaments, and empty TV grills. Advertising contracts and broadcasting rights are in an undefined situation, and box office revenues disappeared. Moreover, indirect and related businesses would fall as collateral victims.
According to data from the 'Gazzetta dello Sport', Italian football could soon go bankrupt. Between the first and second divisions, clubs accumulate a debt of 2.5 billion euros. According to reports, Milan is one of the most affected teams in economic terms. Its losses at the box office, advertising, and broadcast rights are around 145 million euros. Another team severely affected by the current situation is Juventus with a deficit of 140 million. Roma follows it with 120. These three institutions have a darker picture. A different situation for Atalanta, since their participation in the Champions League, has left them black numbers. They're the only team without future financial problems.
France Ligue 1
According to Bernard Caiazzo, Chairman of the supervisory board of Saint -Etienne, many French professional teams could declare bankruptcy over the next six months. This could happen if Covid-19 pandemic continues to imprison football activity in the European country. French football clubs' managers are concerned about the teams' near future. They have stated that if the state doesn't help them around half of the teams will declare bankruptcy.
Bernard Caiazzo indicates that the five biggest European leagues could have lost €4 billion. Meanwhile, the French league has lost around €600 million. Olympique Lyon is the first team to adopt the "Partial Employment" policy, which collects a portion of workers' wages. For his part, Bernard Caiazzo believes that the collections are not sufficient to cover the operation. He estimates that clubs are losing € 250 million each month and they won't play over several weeks more.
Some leagues will receive the support of the governments of their countries. So, filing for bankruptcy does not mean that the teams will disappear. In any case, this is an unfortunate scenario never seen before in professional soccer.
