Tottenham Hotspur players face wage cuts if the club are relegated from the Premier League, owing to clauses written into their contracts.
Spurs are currently 16th in the top-flight, only four points above the drop zone with 10 fixtures remaining.
They have not won a domestic game this calendar year and recently appointed Igor Tudor to replace Thomas Frank as head coach, in an attempt to rescue their season.
However, the Croatian has overseen defeats in his opening two matches against Arsenal and Fulham — heightening the possibility of Spurs falling into England’s second tier for the first time since 1977.
Should that happen there would be major ramifications on and off the pitch, although when it comes to squad remuneration there are provisions in place to limit the cost.
The Athletic can reveal that most members of the first team squad are on deals which include mandatory salary reductions and the vast majority would see their earning slashed by around 50 per cent.
It was a provision factored into all existing agreements struck before Daniel Levy’s departure as executive chairman in September, granting Spurs an element of protection against the doomsday scenario of demotion.
Since Levy’s departure, Spurs have signed two first-team players, Conor Gallagher from Atletico Madrid and the Brazilian full-back Sousa from Santos.
Tudor’s men host Crystal Palace on Thursday and then travel to Spain for their Champions League round of 16 first leg against Atletico Madrid.