Professional football in Germany is at a standstill because of the corona crisis. Most clubs have sent their players to the home office with individual training plans. On Instagram you can now see pictures of Robert Lewandowski, FC Bayern’s top scorer, at work in a private gym. Team colleague Thiago kicks with his son in the garden. While the stars are somehow keeping fit, the club managers are racking their brains over how to proceed.
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On Monday, the managers and managers of the Bundesliga teams were made aware of how serious the situation was at a crisis meeting at the headquarters of the German Football League (DFL) in Frankfurt. Your business model has collapsed due to the Covid 19 pandemic.
370 million euros in TV funds could be missing
Because it cannot be played, the proceeds from spectator tickets sold are missing for the foreseeable future. Sponsorship funds have broken down due to the outstanding amount. And there are no more millions of dollars flowing from the TV marketing of the games. The first and second division clubs had to expect around 370 million euros from the licensees for the remaining games of the season as the fourth installment payment in May. The money may never be paid out, because it will no longer be possible to play in the next few months.
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Professional football in Germany is facing a turning point. Top clubs like FC Bayern or Borussia Dortmund, which have earned a lot in the past few years and have been able to make millions, are likely to come through the crisis somewhat unscathed. Clubs that have done poorly or have taken too much risk must fear for their existence.
The industry is now debating how to avert the collapse of the clubs. One item that is particularly difficult for clubs is the salaries of professionals. According to the DFL’s economic report, they account for around 36 percent of total spending at the 18 Bundesliga clubs.
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“Populist shit terms”
The Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder suggested that highly-endowed stars should consider giving up their wages. That didn’t go down well with the bosses of the Bundesliga clubs. They don’t like politicians talking to them. Horst Heldt, Managing Director of 1. FC Köln, scolded: “I think it would be absolutely sensible to hold back with populist shit expressions”.
Why so sensitive? The scenario of waiving wages is already being discussed in detail at the DFL and in many clubs. Borussia Dortmund as well as 3rd league clubs are geared up for discussions with their kicking employees. “And some clubs are already putting pressure on players,” says Ulf Baranowsky, managing director of the VDV players’ union, SPIEGEL.
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Baranowsky is currently getting calls from soccer players who don’t know how to deal with the new situation, that suddenly the manager of their club is standing in front of them and wants to talk about money. Legally, the clubs have no way of cutting salaries. “The claim to normal payment continues,” says Baranowsky – even in times of a pandemic that paralyzes the entire game operations.
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The question, however, is how great the moral pressure on the footballers will be if traditional clubs like Schalke 04 or Hamburger SV run into financial difficulties. When fans climb the barricades and demand solidarity from the professionals. An insider from DFL circles put it this way to SPIEGEL: “Footballers will experience social ostracism if they don’t give up money in such a situation.”
Bundesliga professionals are envied for their income. Some of them earn more a month than the Chancellor a year. The top earners in the Bundesliga, who collect up to ten million euros a year or more, should hardly mind if they get a few hundred thousand euros less in a month. The situation is completely different for their colleagues who kick in the 3rd league in Halle or in Meppen for 3000 to 5000 euros per month. You have nothing to give away.
Clubs could get money back from the state
The clubs must negotiate with the players’ advisors about a possible salary waiver. Some conversations are likely to be complicated. “It is ridiculous to ask footballers to checkout now,” an agent from southern Germany told SPIEGEL. Another points out that almost all professionals already have losses in the current situation. The contracts of professional soccer players are highly performance-oriented. The athletes get bonuses for points, for victories, for goals scored. However, because there is no play, the players have no way of importing these additional payments at all. They currently only collect their basic salary. “I see little scope for further deductions,” says the consultant.
VDV man Baranowsky believes that players are generally willing to “meet the clubs”. You just have to explain the situation to them plausibly. Bayern captain Manuel Neuer already indicated to the “Bild” that a waiver of salary would also be conceivable: “Like every other person at this time, I and the other football professionals are also thinking about how to best deal with the situation” said the goalkeeper.
Not to save their clubs, but to support society in the corona crisis, the German national team is now contributing a part: According to a video message from midfielder Leon Goretzka, the national team is donating a total of 2.5 million euros to the helper platform “We Help”:
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Clubs that are in need primarily have to help themselves. But you should also urgently inform yourself about government support payments, says VDV man Baranowsky. If, for example, an authority is ordered to be quarantined and all the necessary evidence is provided, the clubs are entitled to a refund of 60 percent of the net salary plus non-wage labor costs in accordance with paragraph 56ff of the Infection Protection Act.
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