The Premier League has presented a plan to increase financial redistribution to the English Football League by £358m over the three seasons to 2025-26, with a series of strings attached.
Under the terms of the deal EFL clubs would receive an extra £88m this season, an extra £101m next season and an extra £169m the season after. Championship clubs would get 75% of the money paid by the Premier League, League One clubs 15% and League Two clubs 10%.
EFL clubs believe they are being offered 14.75% of the Premier League’s net media revenue, well below the 25% they were hoping for. The Premier League argues the amount equates to about 21% once transfer levies and other payments are taken into account.
EFL clubs were presented with the details of the redistribution deal on Thursday at a general meeting held in Derby. The Premier League is waiting for feedback from the EFL before returning to its clubs in the hope that a formal proposal can be made. The 72 EFL clubs would then vote on that proposal.
One of the Premier League’s caveats for providing additional funding is that its under-21 clubs invited to play in the EFL Trophy – 15 are participating this season – must be guaranteed more matches. Another is that League One and Two clubs must set aside part of their allocation for facilities, meaning it could not all be used for transfer fees or player wages. The Premier League is also insisting that parachute payments must continue in the face of EFL opposition.
The EFL’s leadership feels there are obstacles to be resolved before a deal can be struck. These relate primarily to the nature of cost controls to be agreed alongside an increase in redistribution. One particularly contentious element is believed to be the request that clubs relegated from the Premier League be allowed to continue spending at higher relative levels than other clubs in the Championship, something second-tier clubs believe could – alongside parachute payments – distort the competitive nature of the division.
After this season the money received by the EFL from the Premier League would be distributed on merit, meaning the higher a club finishes the more they would receive. It is anticipated that over the next three years each Championship club would earn approximately an extra £10m. This season each League Two club would be expected to receive an extra £350,000.
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The proposals have been brokered between the leadership of the leagues. The EFL said in a statement it would move on to “targeted consultation with all EFL clubs in smaller groups” and wanted “a speedy and satisfactory conclusion to improve the financial health” of its clubs.