EXCLUSIVE: Premier League and EFL agree to sell their TV rights together for the first time – with the Football League set for an £88m bonus payment this season as part of the historic deal
- The Premier League have agreed to sell their TV rights alongside the EFL
- It should ensure that funding for EFL clubs increases in line with that of Premier League teams
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The Premier League has reached a historic deal with the EFL, in which they have agreed to sell their television rights together for the first time.
Under the terms of a Premier League proposal presented to clubs earlier today, the EFL will also receive 14.75 percent of their collective media rights from next season and an £88 million bonus payment this season, with the collective sale in 2028 will start.
The details presented to EFL clubs at a meeting in Derby represent a major breakthrough in what has been a longstanding impasse with the Premier League for several years, and will lead to an immediate increase in funding for the lower divisions.
Although the exact figures will depend on future television deals, the 14.75 per cent stake is expected to more than double the current £130 million in solidarity payments provided by the Premier League to the EFL, a figure that excludes parachute payments.
The agreement to sell television rights on a collective basis is also hugely important and should see EFL club funding rise in line with the Premier League.
The Premier League has agreed to sell TV rights jointly with the EFL for the first time
The proposal will see the EFL own 14.75 percent of the Premier League’s combined media rights
Although the agreement presented today only covers the collective sale of foreign TV rights from the 2028/2029 season, it could be extended to domestic TV deals in the future.
This sales model would be welcomed by broadcasters, especially Sky Sports, as it would give them greater certainty about future content.
The Premier League’s current overseas TV contracts are worth around £5 billion over three years and their value exceeds that of domestic deals, with the EFL set to announce their overseas rights for 2024 to 2028 in the coming weeks market will come. From 2028, the Premier League and EFL will jointly manage the overseas sales process.
EFL chairman Rick Parry has called on the Premier League to agree to a collective approach to the sale of TV rights since his involvement in the infamous Project Big Picture three years ago.
The agreement to sell television rights on a collective basis is also hugely important – and should see EFL club funding rise in line with the Premier League
However, the compromise deal will also satisfy the Premier League as Parry had initially demanded a 25 per cent share of the top flight’s media revenues.
As an added incentive for lower league clubs, the Premier League has also agreed to an extra payment of £130 million a year as part of the so-called New Deal for football.
The EFL clubs have accepted the Premier League’s offer but are opposed to some of the spending restrictions that would be imposed on them as a result of the increased funding.
The Premier League and EFL declined to comment.