Bloom: My biggest challenge yet

Main Club Sponsor

TICKETS

SHOP

Albion chairman on steering the club through coronavirus crisis.

Alex Stedman

2020-04-19T06:00:00Z

Albion chairman Tony Bloom.

Tony Bloom says that leading Albion through the coronavirus crisis is the biggest challenge he’s faced during his time as the club’s owner.

Albion have not played a game in the Premier League since 7th March against Wolves at Molineux and look highly unlikely to take to the field in the foreseeable future.

“I’m sure it is for many, many other chairman and owners across the country,” said Bloom.

“The biggest difficulty is the uncertainty. We are used to having uncertainty in March and April about which league we are going to be in, and we plan for being in the Premier League or Championship.

“We’ve got that uncertainty and also we have no idea when games are going to be played or whether the season is going to finish. Plus there’s the complication for players who are out of contract at the end of June.”

Bloom reiterated the importance of prioritising people’s health and highlighted how unique the current crisis is for much of the country.

“There is not something to look at that happened five or 10 years ago when something similar happened, so we have to look at each situation on its own merits,” he said.

“We have to keep reviewing situations and we have to plan for so many different scenarios on top of the fact that financial losses could be substantial, so it is a very difficult situation for us all.”

Paul Barber and Tony Bloom.

Paul Barber, Dan Ashworth and Graham Potter all took voluntary pay cuts earlier this month to help ease the financial burden on Albion’s chairman. Bloom initially rejected their offer before accepting just over a fortnight ago.

“All three of them spoke about it within a week or two of the first game being postponed and I thought that was just too early,” he added.

“They are our highest paid employees, not including the players and I eventually accepted it with good grace. I really appreciate what they have offered.”