LaLiga, the organising body for Spain’s top two club soccer leagues, could lose as much as €678.8 million (US$756.8 million) if the remainder of the 2019/20 season is postponed indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Spanish sports news outlets Diario AS.
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LaLiga announced last week it had suspended all games until the weekend of 3rd to 5th April, but could be in line to suffer massive financial shortfalls if the Covid-19 outbreak continues to impact the season.
The figures, relayed by Diario AS and reported by Forbes, show that a total cancellation of the current top-flight LaLiga and second-tier Segunda campaigns would cost €549 million ($611.3 million) in TV rights, €88m ($97.9 million) for LaLiga TV subscriptions and €41.4m ($46.1) in stadium gate receipts.
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LaLiga president Javier Tebas has since told Spanish radio station Cadena Cope that any impending resuming of LaLiga will likely be dependent on the outcome of a planned meeting between European soccer leagues, clubs and federations, scheduled for 17th March.
The meeting, which will use other means to avoid any face-to-face discussions, will reportedly analyse the viability of leagues returning to action in the foreseeable future, as well as the possibility of delaying this summer’s UEFA Euro 2020 national team tournament.
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“The approach now is to see what happens on Tuesday,” Tebas said, who added that LaLiga was looking to see if calendars could be aligned to “mitigate the economic blow”. He also warned of “serious problems” if the domestic season was not completed.
“We have 25 per cent of the season left to play. And all the budget will have to be reviewed, that is the damage that can occur if the competition is not finished,” he continued.
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“The biggest clubs in Europe are affected as well as the smaller ones. Those who play in Europe earn a lot from doing so. If the competitions are suspended everything would be revised and the incomes would be much lower. All the budgets of the teams would be compromised if the competition is not completed, but I am convinced that it will be.”
