Prize money

I see further discussions on completing or abandoning the season on MFW.

I understand the principal of having to rebate some tv money for not completing the fixtures but I am a little surprised the liability in this situation falls purely on the league. Ultimately, it simply may not be possible and some element of compromise may be required.

Everyone seems to fall on the side of either completing the fixtures come what may, or truncating the season, with relegation calculated in some way, or voiding and restarting.

From a Norwich perspective, I think the worst possible option is extending as long as possible and then ultimately abandoning the season and getting relegated, not least because we would potentially have to pay the entire squad as premier league players beyond the normal relegation cut off without additional budget.

I don't mean to have a silver bullet but surely, if we are going to truncate the season in some way, the 'prize money' element of the league income could be withheld and offset against any money claimed back by sky, bt and other overseas firms.

This accounts for around £420m in total, I believe, and goes a long way to helping bridge the gap. The league would need to put their hands in their pockets and the tv firms would need to compromise or defer some rebate to prevent being seen as the bad guys.

This would have least impact on any teams that end up getting relegated. It also means the amount that teams need to tighten their belts next season is proportional.

I feel the biggest mess is contracts and the June cut off. I think the Premier squad declarations prevent any new signings from playing in delayed games but I cannot see anything forcing clubs to pay for players they don't want any more, nor players being obligated to play beyond their contracted end dates, no matter what FIFA says.

Anyway, hope everyone is safe and has had a chance to enjoy the sunshine safely.

Posted By: Jester, Apr 11, 16:58:48