November 13 – EFL clubs have accepted a £50 million Premier League rescue package for League One and League Two.
The money can only be used to mitigate the lost revenue from gate receipts, which are pivotal to EFL clubs, for the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons. It cannot be used as a bail-out for clubs that were already struggling financially. Since the game’s shutdown in March, fans have been banned from attending matches in England.
The EFL, which represents clubs from the Championship as well as League One and League Two, had previously rejected a £50 million package from the Premier League that covered the third and fourth professional tiers. Last month, the EFL said that the conditional offer “falls some way short” of what was required and indicated that a solution needed to be found for all 72 clubs. The breakdown in negotiations came shortly after ‘Project Big Picture’ caused a major storm in the English game.
The new package will cover Championship clubs that are “suffering significant Covid-19-related hardship”.
“A collective agreement in principle was made to move forward and finalise the negotiations, with Championship Clubs making it clear today that they wanted to ensure their colleagues in League One and League Two received the proposed 50 million pounds financial support package,” the EFL said in a statement.
“Championship Clubs also acknowledged that discussions in respect of the levels of support they will receive will remain ongoing.”
“The EFL believes that today represents a significant step forward and is hopeful that a final agreement on the short-term rescue package across all three divisions can be reached imminently which will provide much needed support, clarity and certainty for all EFL clubs at a time when they need it most.”
Contact the writer of this story, Samindra Kunti, at moc.l1735105246labto1735105246ofdlr1735105246owedi1735105246sni@o1735105246fni1735105246