Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, the home-ground of Real Madrid will be used as a centre for medical supplies in the fight against coronavirus, the club announced on Thursday. Madrid, the country’s capital is one of the worst-hit areas by the Covid-19 pandemic, with more than 17,166 positive cases as of now and over 2,000 deaths so far.
As Spain continue to grapple with the coronavirus crisis, the number of new cases rose to over 8,744 on Monday; the second-worst in the continent after Italy. The Spanish ministers earlier declared a state of emergency which has shut down much of the country and are likely to extend the initial 15-day period lockdown.
And with medical facilities in the capital struggling to cope, the Los Blancos have opened up their stadium to ease the burden during these testing times.
“Real Madrid Club de Fútbol, in collaboration with the High Council for Sport (CSD), has launched a project in Madrid to supply and distribute strategic medical supplies to be used in the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic,” the club announced on their website.
“As a result of the close collaboration between the two institutions, the Santiago Bernabeu will offer a space that is equipped to store the donations of medical supplies required in the fight against this pandemic.”
“All of the stored supplies will be passed on to the Spanish health authorities, under the authority of the Spanish government, so that the resources, so necessary in the current health emergency situation, are employed in the best and most efficient manner.
As part of the initiative, organisations and businesses will also be given a space for donations,” the club added.
.@RealMadrid and @deportegob open large medical supplies centre at the Santiago Bernabéu.#RealMadrid | #StayHome
— Real Madrid C.F. 🇬🇧🇺🇸 (@realmadriden) March 26, 2020
“Real Madrid will provide a facility for organisations and businesses, particularly those belonging to the sports sector, to leave money or material donations that they wish to make to the Ministry of Health,” they stated in a press release.
Meanwhile, four Bundesliga clubs, Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig and Bayer Leverkusen have combinedly donated over €20million as part of a solidarity fund to help German clubs in the top two tiers during the coronavirus pandemic.
These four clubs, who were Germany’s initial Champions League representatives this season, will share most of their media revenue, which equates to around €12.5m, while adding a further €7.5 on their own.
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