The coronavirus pandemic has led to the rescheduling of major key sporting events set to take the center stage in the year 2020; including the Olympic games billed to take place in Tokyo which unfortunately happens to be one of the affected cities.
Although the “Athletes For COVID-19 Relief” body consisting of athletes from different sports is set to help with relief materials that would help manage the pandemic, some philanthropic athletes have extended their magnanimity to individually support communities and persons in their own capacities. Some of the athletes who have donated over a million for coronavirus include:
Top Athletes Coronavirus Donations
Roger Federer
The Swiss tennis maestro was one of the first batches of sports personnel that contributed to the fight against Covid-19. In collaboration with his beloved wife Mirka, the couple revealed their donation of a million Swiss francs, in the tune of $1.02 million to aid the vulnerable and those affected in their native Switzerland. For a country that is still combating the crisis having recorded over 9,000 confirmed cases and over 100 deaths, this donation will act as a relief to its citizenry.
Lionel Messi
Apart from the fact that the Argentine football genius led his Barcelona teammates to take a 70% slash in their wages as long as the pandemic lasts, the six-time Balon d’Or winner who is currently the highest-paid footballer in the world; made a huge donation of €1 million to a Spanish Hospital where patients are being treated for the virus. Without a doubt, this is a very kind gesture.
Lebron James
The NBA star has kept up with his sterling performance and passion for charitable works. Donating relief materials worth a huge amount of dollars and feeding his community during the pandemic is worth more than gold.
Cristiano Ronaldo
One man who has consistently shown compassion and love for his people in good and bad times is the Maderia-born Portuguese superstar. Cristiano Ronaldo in his unusual and unique way has converted most of his magnificent hotels in the country to hospitals. He has also provided aid for the medical staff of Santa Maria Hospital in Lisbon and San Antonio Hospital in Porto, where he donated life-saving equipment such as ventilators and procured the services of doctors who are under his payroll for as long as the crisis looms.
It should be noted that together with his agent Jorge Mendes, they have contributed an estimated $1.8 million to this cause.
See Also: Top 5 Footballers Who Have Made The Highest Donations To Fight Coronavirus
Tiger Woods
One of the world’s most successful sportsmen, American professional golfer Tiger Woods has donated huge relief materials and sponsored an online lesson program to help students during the pandemic.
Neymar Da Silva
It has also been revealed that the current world most expensive player and the prince of Paris Saint Germain, Neymar, through one of his companies in his home country Brazil, donated a whopping R$5 million to a solidarity fund and UNICEF to combat the pandemic ravaging the world.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
When the AC Milan returning marshall and goal poacher announced via Twitter in March that he was setting up a GoFundMe account whose goal is to raise €1million to “Kick The Virus Away”, it was a welcome idea as he also supported the cause with £91,000. For the veteran footballer, he was only contributing his lot to the medical practitioners at the forefront of the battle in the renaissance city of Milan, little did he know that he was leading a movement as other footballers began to follow suit.
Marcus Rashford
Through his partnership with FareShare, one of the largest charity organizations fighting hunger and food wastage in the United Kingdom, the Manchester United starlet has so far raised a whooping £20 million to help those who cannot fend for themselves, most especially destitute children during the lockdown. Of course, this exemplary and philanthropic gesture has shown that there is hope for the younger generation to save the world.
Mesut Ozil
Join me to support the MASK UP campaign of my bro @ToniRuediger. This will provide 60,000 face masks to low income market traders in Sierra Leone. ???? You can help as well here: https://t.co/WORG5s3nAu https://t.co/MSEtjbLDSu
— Mesut Özil (@M10) April 23, 2020
The Gunners’ star is a popular name in the long list of athletes who are fond of making donations to charities. Thus, it did not come as a surprise that despite the disruption of football which happens to be his major source of income, he made a huge donation to help save children with medical operation conditions. In addition to that, he donated £80,000 to a Turkish charity to help Muslims during Ramadan amid the coronavirus crisis.
Don't miss the #StayAtHome Fortnite session live with my brothers @seadk6 and Julian #Draxler on @Twitch? ➡ https://t.co/LonLCL2sjU || We will play for the good cause and donate money for @BigShoe_11 – you can donate as well if you want: https://t.co/8GRtAGG4tH pic.twitter.com/gIf8ekH8zE
— Mesut Özil (@M10) March 15, 2020
See Also: How Much Pay Cut Did These Football Managers Take Due To Coronavirus?
Pep Guardiola
Just recently, the Spaniard who is one of the best coaches in the world lost his mother to the virus. Notwithstanding, Pep is one of sports philanthropists at the forefront of granting aid to ensure this battle is won. His €1 million-donation to the Medical College of Barcelona and the Angel Soler Daniel Foundation will be used to procure medical equipment and protective gear for medical practitioners in the country that is one of the most affected.
In all, while numerous athletes have made donations to fight coronavirus, others have taken pay cuts, given out free meals, and fund free online lessons all in an effort to manage the devastating pandemic.
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