Barcelona considering collective salary reduction for first-team stars, could save €70 million

According to journalist Toni Juanmarti, Barcelona have proceeded with the work to alter their financial situation for the good. And for that, the team plans to request a collective salary reduction from the first team to make up for the estimated €100 million in losses.

Barcelona expect to bear a loss of nearly €100 million due to their relocation to Montjuic.

It must be remembered that the Blaugrana have informed the Royal Spanish Soccer Federation (RFEF) that they will play their home games at the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium in Montjuic next season due to the remodelling of Camp Nou.

On top of that, Barcelona have been asked to reduce €200 million from their wage bill in order to comply with La Liga’s Financial Fair Play rules.

Thus, Joan Laporta’s management is considering requesting a collective salary reduction. Juanmarti says that the idea has already been discussed with several players.

Meanwhile, in order to comply with the limits, Barcelona intend to complete one or more big-money sales but despite that, they understand they need other ways to get in more money.

As Barcelona continue to work on minimizing the impact of the temporary relocation, they want the players to make some economic effort. For that, some will be asked to take a reduction while for others, there will a deferral.

For the players whose contracts end in 2024, a deferral would not be possible so they will be asked to reduce their salary for a year. Meanwhile, for the players whose contracts go beyond 2024, there would be to mix a reduction with a deferral.

At the same time, the team is also contemplating several renewals that will open up some salary space. For example, Jordi Alba ends his contract in 2024 and he might receive a one-year extension with a lower salary.

The idea right now for Barcelona is to study the implications of the move Montjuic and share said report with the dressing room. Between the mix of this salary reduction and deferrals, the team hopes to save as much as €70 million.

Amidst all this, Juanmarti reports that La Liga is considering making the Financial FairPlay rules more lenient this summer. This is mostly because they understand many teams are struggling with their finances. 

Barcelona’s case, however, is unlikely to get affected as they are so over the limit that they will need to make many more financial moves just to sign new players.