One of the additional sources of income upon promotion to the Premier League is the extra revenue from televised games. The amount of coverage generally tends to be skewed to the teams seen as “bigger” and further up the table because they are more marketable to a wider audience.
This leaves those teams scrapping it out in the bottom half receiving less income from television than those above them.
It has been standard practice now for a number of years, with a select group of clubs who are consistently around the top end.
With this additional revenue clubs are able to have larger expenditure bills, such as wages and transfer fees. Ultimately it creates an unfair cycle whereby those who finish nearer the top have more to spend improving the club and therefore consistently finish near the top – getting more TV time and revenue for doing so.
The Championship receives markedly less overall coverage, even compared to the lower half of the Premier League. Yet it would seem that even in the Championship an unfair advantage exists in TV exposure and therefore revenue.
This season Leeds United has been on television four times. Sitting in 18th place they have managed one win, two draws and one loss in those 360 minutes of live football.
Compare this to three teams in the top half of the table. Crystal Palace has been on television once this season, Hull once and Middlesbrough twice, the total for all three being the same as Leeds.
At the moment the additional revenue does not seem to be making any difference on the field, but what’s to say that will not change down the line?
Even if it makes no difference on the pitch, it will be extra money for Leeds and their owners who are trying to balance the books, which is surely and unfair advantage over others striving to do the same in that league.
Leeds just happens to be the example here and they will argue that three of the four games have actually been away from home. The point here is not so much to focus on Leeds, after all Cardiff sit just behind them with three, but to highlight the uneven distribution of television exposure and revenue.
There will be some teams that are shown more than others, which is the nature of the beast when television comes into play. Unless it’s a relegation battle the general public and neutral audience would rather watch teams they have heard of or that are expected to do well because of the perceived entertainment on offer.
However, considering that the first part of the season is always unpredictable for TV schedulers in terms of which clubs will do well or not, it would be nice to spread out the coverage more evenly so everyone gets the opportunity of additional exposure.
The worry is that if this doesn’t happen a split will begin to appear in the Championship much like the Premier League, with consistent contenders, so called “big” clubs and relegated Premier League sides getting the coverage at the expense of others, and so the cycle will continue.
Find me here: @dmsmith1987
Introducing the neat little app that’ll pay you to view content tailored to your interests:
ThisisFutbol.com are seeking new writers to join the team! If you’re passionate about football, drop us a line at “thisisfutbol.com@snack-media.com” to learn more.
The concern at Championship level is that the money received for being on tv does not cover the loss in gate receipts. I know many teams, Leeds included, would rather not be picked for tv.
Fair point, maybe more of an even split in coverage would help with this as well because then those teams who in the past have been picked for TV more often won’t have to suffer larger gate losses through more coverage. The even split would then also give other teams more exposure.