EPL side Arsenal plans to "make 55 staff redundant "because of the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The redundancies are in the soccer, commercial and administration departments, with the "majority coming in the latter two." There will also be cuts to staff benefits, capital projects and discretionary projects, but investments will continue to be made in the playing staff and Arsenal's transfer plans are unaffected. The Gunners' first-team players and Manager Mikel Arteta agreed to a 12.5% pay cut in April. Arsenal's executive team also "agreed to waive more than a third of their salaries over the next 12 months." However, the club says it now faces "more significant and longer-lasting reductions in our revenue than we all hoped." Arsenal added that it did not take the decision to propose redundancies "lightly" and had looked at "every aspect of the club and our expenditure before reaching this point." The Arsenal Supporters' Trust (AST) told BBC Sport it is looking for more information from the club to explain the plans (BBC, 8/5).
Arsenal's "self-sustainable business model relies heavily on matchday income from Emirates Stadium and the ongoing absence of supporters" -- in addition to the cancellation of concerts and other non-football events -- has "hit the club particularly hard" despite Owner Stan Kroenke's estimated net worth of $8.3B. The club terminated the contracts of around 10 members of its scouting network at the end of May (ESPN.com, 8/5).
Arsenal’s head of recruitment, Francis Cagigao, is among the 55 staff members who will leave the club. Cagigao has forged a "formidable reputation during 24 years of service at Arsenal" (London GUARDIAN, 8/5).
