CSR & HELPING WITH THE CORONAVIRUS EFFORT

CSR & HELPING WITH THE COVID-19 EFFORT

At a time of crisis, the sporting world has united to help those at the frontline taking on the disease.

FIFA has made a $10m donation to the WHO to help them deal with the pandemic, with President Gianni Infantino offering assistance given football’s unique reach worldwide.

On a more practical level, Mercedes F1 have been working with clinicians to develop a new breathing aid aimed at keeping patients out of intensive care, while fellow Formula 1 team Ferrari has also donated $10m and 150 ventilators to the Italian health service.

Rugby League World Cup 2021 organisers have announced that 20,021 tickets will be donated to key workers for next year’s event, while Matchroom Boxing has pledged 200 tickets for each of its upcoming shows to NHS staff when sport returns.

A number of athletes and clubs have taken a partial or full wage-cut in light of the crisis, though Cristiano Ronaldo has donated over €1m to help fight coronavirus in Portugal. Along with his Juventus teammates, Ronaldo has given up wages for the next four months to help the club manage the economic impact of the pandemic. Watch this space for Premier League clubs to agree similar proposals soon.

Allied to the likes of Chelsea and Gary Neville’s Hotel Football offering free accommodation to NHS workers, it’s clear the sporting world is pulling together to help support workers at this challenging time.