Published 09:28 IST, October 6th 2020
Barcelona announce €97m loss during 2019-20 season, blame COVID-19 for €204m revenue lost
Barcelona suffered financially from the consequences of games being played behind closed doors and hence there was a considerable loss of income.
Barcelona have confirmed that the coronavirus pandemic has cost them around €204 million revenue lost so far and has forced them to make a number of adjustments to their budget. The club has seen a huge reduction in revenue streams as well as the loss of match-day revenue due to the absence of fans. The LaLiga heavyweights' total revenue for the 19-20 season is €855 million, down by €204 million from the €1,059 million they claim that would have come in without the coronavirus pandemic.
The steep estimation of loss comes even after Barca players were forced to take a 70% wage cut during the lockdown period. A number of measures have been drawn up to help cut spending although the club has not revealed what those measures exactly are. The club has also lightened the wage bill by offloading big earners which include the likes of Luis Suarez, Arturo Vidal and Ivan Rakitic with Lionel Messi close to leaving as well, having initially handed in a shocking transfer request.
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The Barcelona board is expecting further losses with Barcelona saying due to the continuing effects of the coronavirus pandemic, they expect revenue to fall further in 2020-21, with €791 million estimated to come in. As per available figures, Barcelona's debt has risen from €217 million in June 2019 to €488 million in June 2020.
Earlier in April, Barcelona President Josep Maria Bartomeu had admitted that the club would fail to reach that target due to the global health crisis, saying at the time that the Spanish side would need to “change models and the way we do things”. The club also confirmed that the elections for a new president will be held on March 20 and 21, 2021, which will choose a replacement for Bartomeu.
The club suffered financially from the consequences of games being played behind closed doors and hence there was a considerable loss of income. The lack of tourists and visitors to the city of Barcelona due to the reductions and limitations applied to international tourism also meant far fewer visitors to Barcelona's premises, meaning major losses in terms of such areas as visitors to the Camp Nou Experience and the sale of products in official stores.
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Image credits: Barcelona Twitter
Updated 09:29 IST, October 6th 2020