Post by QPR Report on Mar 19, 2010 7:01:41 GMT
That's real money! (But not enough!)
The Times/Oliver Kay
Richard Scudamore to offer over £100m a year to Football League
Sport relief: Scudamore's plans would help relegated clubs to avoid problems like those at Southampton
The Premier League is preparing to pledge more than £100 million a season to the Football League in an attempt to bridge the financial gulf that has taken numerous clubs to the brink of ruin.
The deal has yet to be ratified, but, under the terms offered by Richard Scudamore, the Premier League chief executive, clubs relegated from the top flight after next season would receive “parachute payments” for four years instead of two, bringing greater financial stability.
There would also be a significant increase in “solidarity payments” to the Football League and its 72 member clubs — another welcome boost for the League, which has secured a three-year, £21 million deal to be sponsored by npower from next season.
Under the terms of a three-year deal signed in July 2007, the Premier League is committed to paying £20.6 million a season to the Football League in solidarity payments — £5.4 million to invest in youth development, £4 million for community programmes and a further £11.2 million to distribute among the 72 clubs — in addition to parachute payments of £11.2 million for those clubs relegated in either of the previous two seasons.
The new proposals would mean a maximum overall parachute payment of £48 million per club, with the sum potentially starting at £16 million in the first season and continuing to £8 million in the fourth season in the event that the club have not won promotion back to the top flight.
This would help to avert situations such as those suffered by Football League clubs such as Southampton and Watford, who have encountered severe financial troubles once the terms for the parachute payments have ended.
Both leagues are keen, however, to avoid the emergence of a two-tier Championship, where those clubs who have had recent Premier League status would hold a considerable financial advantage. That has led the Premier League to propose a substantial increase to the “solidarity payments” to ensure that more money is distributed to clubs farther down the pyramid.
In return, the Premier League has requested guarantees that the Football League and its clubs invest more heavily in youth development, community projects and facilities at their stadiums so that the two bodies are more closely aligned in future.
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/article7067907.ece
The Times/Oliver Kay
Richard Scudamore to offer over £100m a year to Football League
Sport relief: Scudamore's plans would help relegated clubs to avoid problems like those at Southampton
The Premier League is preparing to pledge more than £100 million a season to the Football League in an attempt to bridge the financial gulf that has taken numerous clubs to the brink of ruin.
The deal has yet to be ratified, but, under the terms offered by Richard Scudamore, the Premier League chief executive, clubs relegated from the top flight after next season would receive “parachute payments” for four years instead of two, bringing greater financial stability.
There would also be a significant increase in “solidarity payments” to the Football League and its 72 member clubs — another welcome boost for the League, which has secured a three-year, £21 million deal to be sponsored by npower from next season.
Under the terms of a three-year deal signed in July 2007, the Premier League is committed to paying £20.6 million a season to the Football League in solidarity payments — £5.4 million to invest in youth development, £4 million for community programmes and a further £11.2 million to distribute among the 72 clubs — in addition to parachute payments of £11.2 million for those clubs relegated in either of the previous two seasons.
The new proposals would mean a maximum overall parachute payment of £48 million per club, with the sum potentially starting at £16 million in the first season and continuing to £8 million in the fourth season in the event that the club have not won promotion back to the top flight.
This would help to avert situations such as those suffered by Football League clubs such as Southampton and Watford, who have encountered severe financial troubles once the terms for the parachute payments have ended.
Both leagues are keen, however, to avoid the emergence of a two-tier Championship, where those clubs who have had recent Premier League status would hold a considerable financial advantage. That has led the Premier League to propose a substantial increase to the “solidarity payments” to ensure that more money is distributed to clubs farther down the pyramid.
In return, the Premier League has requested guarantees that the Football League and its clubs invest more heavily in youth development, community projects and facilities at their stadiums so that the two bodies are more closely aligned in future.
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/article7067907.ece