Over 400 players apply to FIFA for financial support
No fewer than 441 players have so far applied to FIFA financial support following the distortion of financial plans by ravaging effect of Covid-19
The rampaging effect of Coronavirus pandemic among other financial constraints has seen some players unsure of regular payments just like many workers in other sectors across the globe have either been handed reduced salaries or furloughed completely.
About Eighty-nine per cent of applications received so far reportedly came from Europe while the remaining 11 per cent came from other parts of the world.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino set aside £12.3m to help players who go unpaid between 2020 and 2022.
A further £3.8m has been set aside for players who went unpaid between 2015 and 2020.
The funds, dubbed Fund for Football players (FFP) which were set-up in February this year before football’s global shutdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic, are designed to help players whose clubs go out of business to avoid paying wages and are then quickly reformed, giving previous employees no chance to reclaim what they are owed.
Grants from the Fund for Football Players will not, according to the governing body, cover the full amount of salary owed but will at least provide players with a safety net. Players can apply until the end of June via world players’ union, FIFPRO.
So many players whose contract are about to expire or expired in the course of the pandemic lockdown are at a cross road as clubs continue to battle with financial constraints on one hand and scared of post covid-19 bounce back on the other.
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The clubs affected are not only in the elite divisions but also lower divisions.
Leagues have started re-opening with basketful conditions to be observed by players, and officials respectively all aimed as checking the spread of the pandemic.
Fans however remain locked out for now as the situation remains under close monitor across the globe. The EPL one of the most followed leagues in football is expected to re-start on June 17