ROME (REUTERS) - The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) has approved a request from Italy's top-flight league Serie A to push back the deadline for the payment of March salaries by a month due to the financial consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Members of the FIGC council unanimously voted in favour of the move on Monday (May 17), moving the deadline from May until June to help clubs struggling with the economic impact of the pandemic.

Football clubs have lost millions of euros worth of match-day revenue while games have been played behind closed doors.

Champions Inter Milan made an unsuccessful plea to players and staff this month to give up two months' wages in a bid to balance the books.

Inter's owner, Chinese retail giant Suning, is looking for a partner to inject fresh funds into the club and chief executive officer Giuseppe Marotta said on Saturday: "The Covid-19 phenomenon has hit hard a business that was already difficult to sustain.

"Now the main objective is to reduce costs, therefore also wages, which have a big impact, and then we must make the most of the resources at our disposal."

The FIGC also said a working group involving Serie A, Serie B, third-tier Lega Pro, the players' association (AIC) and the coaches' association (AIAC) would be set up to discuss "urgent solutions".