New Football League Broadcasting Deal - Impact

Telegraph/John Ley

Championship clubs could be hit hardest financially by new TV deal

Clubs hoping to reach the Premier League could have to reduce their offers to players following news that the Football League’s income will be cut by £23 million a season following the latest television rights deal.

Championship clubs could be hit hardest by new TV deal

The Football League announced on Monday that a new three-year deal with Sky, which begins for the start of the 2012-13 season, is worth £195million, a £69million reduction on the existing deal.

Simon Clegg, the former manager of GB Athletics and chief executive at Ipswich Town, admitted there was a mixed reaction to the news. Primarily, the fact a deal is in place until 2015 is a relief – but the deal comes at a cost.

“It will affect us all,” said Clegg, “but it will be in the Championship that it will be felt the most. In the current climate this looks a good deal for the Football league. But the fact is it represents a 26 per cent drop from the last deal.”

For the first time, only one provider is involved, with Sky screening 75 league games a season, as well as the play-offs, Carling Cup fixtures and the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy. But in previous deals, ITV and the BBC have been involved.

While it is a complicated deal, broadly speaking the split is 80 per cent to the Championship clubs, with 12 per cent going to League One sides and the remaining eight per cent to League Two teams. So the Championship clubs will suffer more than most.

The previous deal was worth £88 million a season over three years but Clegg added: “The market place has changed substantially, and it is a very different economy for clubs.

"With the consequent loss of tension in the market place, without having BBC, ITV and Setanta bidding, the bottom line is we will get £766,000 per annum less and so we need to cut our cloth accordingly.”

Clegg believes the new deal that begins in 18 months will have a say in new contracts. “I cannot believe £750,000 plus per annum will not have an impact on how people run their businesses. And much of our outgoings relate to players’ wages and transfers.

“Clubs will not be willing to give out large contracts and this could impact on players. People will act accordingly but I cannot believe that 24 clubs in the Championship will collectively be able to accept a loss of £18million.

“Clubs will have to focus their minds even more on their finances.”

Lower league clubs will be less affected and Mick Brown, general secretary at League Two Oxford United, admitted the club was still getting used to the new levels after returning to the Football League.

“The current deal is massively more than the amount we received when we left the league a few years ago,” said Brown.

Indeed, the £65million a year deal is more than half the agreement from 2006 to 2009, when it stood at £36.5million a year.

www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/news/8430527/Championship-clubs-could-be-hit-hardest-financially-by-new-TV-deal.html

good for the fans