European Clubs Lose IDR 113.6 Trillion Due To The COVID-19 Pandemic

Illustration - Barcelona (Twitter @FCBarcelona)

JAKARTA - The European football organization (UEFA) has released a study on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic that has hit the finances of European clubs in the last two seasons. The loss reached seven billion euros or equivalent to Rp113.6 trillion

Quoting Antara, Thursday, Europe's top clubs suffered losses of four billion euros in 2021, up from three billion euros compared to the previous year.

The majority of the loss was due to empty stadiums where revenue from ticket sales fell 88 percent in 2020-2021. Transfer revenue also fell 40 percent.

British media said the report, which covered 724 clubs in Europe's top 54 divisions, added that 900 million euros were given as a discount to broadcasting rights holders, while sponsorship revenue fell by 1.7 billion euros.

However, UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin said there was still reason to be optimistic that fans would be allowed to return to stadiums.

"One lesson from the last two years is that only with solidarity and cooperation can European football overcome existential challenges like this pandemic," he said.

"This report provides a sobering picture of the post-pandemic challenges that await us. But whether the pandemic persists or goes away, European football will remain strong, stable and united in 2022." Reuters reports.