MADRID: Football clubs in Spain’s top two divisions have agreed to give an additional €200m over the next four years to support Spanish sports and lower league football.

A LaLiga statement said that this would be possible by expanding a standard annual donation – orginally one per cent of revenue – after the sealing of a European Commission-approved collective broadcasting rights deal in 2015.

This has been increased to 2.5pc under a new agreement which will also see LaLiga double its contribution to the national federation from one per cent to two per cent.

The agreement followed an eight-hour meeting between LaLiga’s president Javier Tebas and his RFEF rival Luis Rubiales plus Sports Minister Irene Lozano.

A joint statement said: “This agreement looks to help sport not just in these moments of crisis provoked by COVID-19 but forever This is a structural measure with no time limit which will strengthen the commitment of the professional clubs and La Liga with Spanish sport.”

The virus has so far infected more than 200,000 people in Spain, claiming 21,282 lives.

La Liga’s statement added that it would be contributing a total of €51m per year to the sports ministry as a result of the new agreement, which would go towards “creating a fund to help boost organised sport, Olympic and Paralympic sports and internationalisation of sport.”

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