March 27 – As the English Premier League ponders whether to restart the season at some point, Germany’s top clubs have a more pressing priority – donating €20 million as a gesture to struggling cash-strapped teams lower down.
Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig and Bayer Leverkusen have all earned significanlty this season by appearing in the Champions League and are handing over some of that money to help others in the top two divisions.
Unlike in England, German clubs are not bankrolled by billionaire owners and the clubs in question will now forego their share of the national media revenue and donate the remainder from their own funds.
Players and staff at several German clubs have already agreed to take pay cuts to assist behind-the-scenes workers and the German Football League (DFL) will decide how this latest gesture will be distributed.
“This decision underlines the fact that solidarity is not an empty word in the Bundesliga,” said DFL president Christian Seifert. “The DFL is very grateful to the four Champions League participants.”
The four clubs will forego €12.5 million of their remaining share of next season’s TV rights revenues, and add a further €7.5 million from their own reserves.
“In these difficult times, it is important that the stronger shoulders support the weaker shoulders. We want to show that football stands together,” Bayern CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said in a statement.
His Dortmund counterpart Hans-Joachim Watzke added: “We always said that we wanted to show solidarity when clubs fall into difficulty due to this extraordinary situation and through no fault of their own.”
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