BLOG: Should there be a fairer distribution of TV money in English football?

At the start 2016/17 season, the Premier League announced a record TV deal that will generate over £10.4 billion.

The colossal fee has been distributed between all 20 top flight clubs and will span over three seasons until the end of the 2018-19 season.

A lot of fans supporting Championship, League One and League Two sides will feel that the money in football is not distributed fairly and that Football League clubs will never be able to reach the heights of the Premier League due to their lack of financial backing.

The fee itself is consisted of both television funding from BT and Sky and overseas television rights. Is this just another way for franchise clubs to throw money at player wages and new signings; or have clubs been using their new found fortunes wisely?

The Premier League also announced a price cap on away tickets this season; meaning that fans from top flight clubs will not have to pay more than £30 to follow their sides in away matches.

This just shows that the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United have used their money to give back to their fans that have to pay up to £100 at times just to attend a home fixture.

The new cap means that it is often cheaper to buy an away ticket in the Premier League than it is in the Championship.

The Championship gets a reasonable amount of TV coverage on Sky, with the broadcasters showing at least one game a weekend. The same can’t be said for League One and League Two. They occasionally get a game shown on Sky, but their main methods of television revenue come via a successful campaign in the FA Cup.

If a side from League One or League Two is able to reach the third round of the competition, they have the chance of being drawn a glamour cup tie away at a big club.

An example of this is Plymouth Argyle who this season were drawn away to Liverpool. The Green Army earned around £1 million from the fixture after taking Liverpool to a replay. The seven figure fee may seem to be a lot for a club like Plymouth, but to Premier League sides this is merely pence.

Therefore, top flight clubs may seem to be giving back to their supporters but the money in TV is still a ridiculous fee and professional clubs in lower leagues deserve more.