AFL players have agreed to cut their wages by up to 70 per cent amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Aussie rules professionals will receive half of their pay in April and May, while their wages will drop to 30 per cent from June if fixtures are still on hold.

AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan said the agreement, which follows "two weeks of intense negotiations", was crucial to safeguarding the future of the sport.

"I want to thank the players for how they handled this," he told AFL.com.au. 

"They have made a decision which will ensure we can keep going. 

"This issue has been so complex, so fast-moving and we have been able to achieve in a couple of days what would normally take months." 

McLachlan also revealed the AFL was close to securing bank loans of 500million Australian dollars.