How much is winning the Championship play-off final worth?

Victors win more than a trophy and a place in the Premier League

Alex Pattle
Saturday 29 May 2021 16:09 BST
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Fulham were last season’s Championship play-off final winners
Fulham were last season’s Championship play-off final winners (Getty Images)

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The Championship play-off final takes place on Saturday as Brentford and Swansea City bid for a place in the Premier League.

The fixture, which will be taking place at Wembley as has been customary in recent years, is one of the most lucrative games in all of football.

A spot in England’s top flight is not all that is on the line, with the winning side receiving a significant sum of money, too.

Ahead of last year’s Championship play-off final, Deloitte reported that the victorious club could earn anywhere between £135million and £265m, depending on whether or not they could avoid immediate relegation from the Premier League.

Official numbers from the 2018/19 Premier League campaign revealed that all 20 clubs received a share of broadcast revenue totalling £2.4bn. Each team were given £34.3m each, £43m in international TV money and £4.9m in commercial payments – equalling £82.5m in total per club, regardless of where they finished in the league.

League positions were factored in elsewhere, however, with the 20th-placed side in 2018/19 – Huddersfield Town – receiving £1.9m in prize money and champions Manchester City earning £38.3m. ‘Facility fees’, based on how many televised games a team competed in, also played a role.

Brentford were beaten 2-1 by Fulham in last season’s final, as the Bees missed out on all of that potential revenue.

Fulham were relegated this term, however, meaning they did not earn as much as they could have from their victory over Brentford – per Deloitte’s report – despite a parachute payment for their drop back into the second tier.

Brentford will hope to make amends for that defeat this Saturday, with Swansea standing between the Bees and the Premier League – and a significant amount of money.

It should be noted, however, that the effects of the coronavirus pandemic are expected to have impacted the various revenue streams.

Whoever wins between Brentford and Swansea on Saturday will join Championship title-winners Norwich and runners-up Watford in climbing into the Premier League, with those two sides having earned automatic promotion.

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