EFL slams ‘unfair’ Premier League rights deal

The English Football League has criticised the Premier League’s new domestic TV deal.

The renewed deals with Sky, BT and Amazon were announced this week and roll over the £4.8 billion contracts previously signed for the previous rights cycle. The league skipped its typical auction on approval from the British government due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but agreed to provide an extra £100 million to support the football pyramid.

The deal however does not alter the currently controversial ‘parachute payments’ for clubs relegated from the Premier League. In addition, the Championship will not be able to access any of that £100 million funding. 

The so-called parachute payments provide clubs relegated from the EPL with extra funds for up to three seasons in order to make up for the lost revenue from lucrative Premier League broadcasting. The Premier League does provide smaller ‘solidarity’ payments to clubs in the Championship, but the second-tier league has long-argued that this diminishes competition and creates an unfair environment.

In a statement, the EFL said: “The current media rights deal will preserve the status quo of an unbalanced, unsustainable, and unfair financial distribution model across English football which continues to cause serious financial issues throughout the football pyramid, while continuing to distort competition between clubs and threaten the long-term viability of EFL competitions and clubs in the Championship, League One and League Two.”