Lionel Messi: Barcelona Players to Cut Pay 70%, Donate to Workers Amid COVID-19

Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi released a statement on Monday, saying the club's players will take 70 per cent wage cuts and make other contributions to ensure the team's other employees will still be paid during Spain's state of emergency amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Sam Marsden of ESPN shared the statement:

"We want to clarify that our desire has always been for a reduction to be applied to our salaries because we understand that this is an exceptional situation and we are the first that have ALWAYS helped the club with what they have asked of us.

"Many times we have even done things on our own accord, at moments when we felt it necessary or important to do so.

"For that reason, it surprises us that from inside the club there would be people that want to put us under a magnifying glass or try to pressure us into something that we were always clear we wanted to do. In fact, if the agreement has dragged on, it's because we were looking for a formula to help the club and its workers in these difficult times.

"For our part, the moment has arrived to announce that, aside from the 70% wage cut during the State of Emergency, we are going to also make contributions so that all the club's employees can earn 100% of their salaries for as long as this situation lasts."

Marsden noted the agreement will affect all of its professional teams, including the basketball one.

In the wake of Messi's statement and the pay cut, the Barcelona star was likened to Che Guevara by French news paper L'Equipe:

The pay cut came after Marsden and Moises Llorens of ESPN reported on Wednesday that the players rejected the club's first proposal to reduce wages. Barcelona are concerned about more than just the lost revenue from matchdays, as the club's museum typically draws thousands of visitors per week. There is also uncertainty about prize and television money with games suspended.

Matias Grez of CNN reported Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo each gave €1 million ($1.1 million) to help fight the spread of the coronavirus.

Half of Messi's donation went to Clinic Barcelona hospital, while the other half went to a medical center in his native Argentina.

The World Health Organization reports there have been more than 638,000 cases of the coronavirus as of Monday. Spain has been hit particularly hard and has the fourth-most confirmed cases behind only the United States, Italy and China.