- The previously proposed contract was expected to be worth a further GBP 900 million over six years.
- British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak signed the English Football Governance Bill this week
The English Football League (EFL) said earlier this week that football's independent regulator has the power to impose funding agreements, after Premier League clubs failed to make offers to the EFL. It has become even more important.”
Ahead of Monday's general meeting, well-informed sources said there was hope that an offer could eventually be made for EFL worth an additional 900 million pounds sterling (approximately 1.2 billion US dollars) over six years. However, in the end, nothing was presented by the club. Instead, the focus was first on agreeing new financial rules for the Premier League.
In a statement, the EFL said its board was “clearly disappointed” that the Premier League club had not made an offer.
The EFL added in a statement: “The league and its clubs are seeking new funding from the Premier League and stand ready and waiting to consider and conclude new arrangements.”
“As predicted many times, the lack of positive progress shows once again how difficult it is for football to address this issue without an independent voice.”
“Despite pressure from the government, fans and a united voice across the professional game, the latest developments represent a further setback, with the league now set to deliver on the latest commitment from the Premier League. We are awaiting a formal update proposing how to recommit to the latest commitment to the Sustainable Finance Financial Agreement with the EFL.
“The League is keen to introduce the Football Governance Bill as it is more important than ever to give the independent regulator the necessary powers to ensure the long-term sustainability of the Pyramid. ”
“We look forward to continuing further engagement with Government, MPs and stakeholders from all political parties. In particular, it is vital that the much-needed match review status begins as soon as possible. This is because it provides an objective basis for a sustainable football model.”
The government has previously warned that the independent regulator would be given “backstop” powers to force a settlement, but it wants the Premier League and EFL to resolve the issue themselves.
Sources close to the Premier League have questioned whether the EFL is prepared to accept a deal, and when an outline proposal was submitted to the EFL in September last year, it rejected it with 15 separate points. He said he did.
Unless an offer is made and accepted, the EFL will not agree to changes to the domestic calendar to enable top-flight clubs to cope with the increased demands of UEFA's expanded competitions. If an agreement is reached, the Carabao Cup semi-final second leg and FA Cup rematch are expected to be cancelled.
Premier League officials expressed hope after Monday's meeting that new financial rules could be agreed at the league's annual general meeting in June, giving hope for a funding deal to be reached by then. Apparently not.
Many top clubs are thought to be in favor of the deal in principle, but are wary of agreeing to a deal without finalizing cost-control measures in the top flight.
Their fear is that if no action is taken in the Premier League and stricter restrictions are imposed in the Championship, relegated clubs could immediately find themselves in serious financial crisis.
A Premier League chairman had expected financial rules to be broadly agreed this week in line with UEFA's new regulations limiting the proportion of team spending in revenue, but the mood has changed among some clubs. He said there was uncertainty about what would happen if that were to happen. Whatever, you agree.
He said some clubs were simply opposed to the idea of giving the EFL any more money.
The deal, which had previously been proposed but has not been formally proposed, would see the EFL retain 14.75% of combined EFL and Premier League media revenue, giving it an additional value of around £900m over six years. It is predicted that it will be equivalent.
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