The English Football League, which operates the three divisions below the top-tier Premier League, has dismissed suggestions that clubs in the second-tier Championship are unhappy with the body’s recently-signed rights deal with pay-television broadcaster Sky, amid reports of a breakaway league being formed by dissatisfied teams.
The EFL last month agreed a five-season extension to its rights deal with Sky, running from 2019-20 to 2023-24. The deal is worth £600m (€679m/$790m), representing a 36-per-cent year-on-year increase on the previous arrangement, which was set to expire at the end of the 2018-19 campaign.
Under the deal, Sky will retain exclusive live rights to the EFL, League Cup, EFL Trophy and play-off games across the Championship, League One and League Two through to May 2024.
The Bloomberg news agency reported that the deal will earn each Championship club about £7m a year, a figure which some teams supposedly feel is too low in comparison to the television money received by Premier League clubs.
However, EFL chief executive Shaun Harvey said that the organisation has received no complaints from clubs following the signing of the new deal.
“Sky Sports has for many years been a hugely important and valued partner of the EFL and we were delighted to extend our relationship by a further five years,” Harvey told Bloomberg. “The detail in respect of the record-breaking £600m domestic broadcasting agreement was presented to all clubs in September and no questions or objections were raised.”
Bloomberg, citing sources familiar with the matter, also reported that at least 10 Championship clubs are considering forming a new breakaway league that would be showcased by a new broadcast partner.
Bloomberg said a ‘Premier League 2’ concept is being discussed, with internet company Amazon and social media platform Facebook reportedly being considered as broadcast partners. The report added that the idea has been discussed with the Premier League’s executive chairman, Richard Scudamore.