MANCHESTER UNITED will be the biggest financial losers of all 20 Premier League clubs if the season is scrapped.
The campaign was put on hold on March 13 due to the coronavirus crisis with most clubs having nine games left.
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The total cost to the 20 clubs of scrapping the Premier League season could be as much as £1.08bn
The two Manchester clubs would be hit in the pocket most if the season was called off with a combined £225.7m loss
Leicester’s 4-0 win over Aston Villa four weeks ago was the last match to go ahead before Mikel Arteta and Callum Hudson-Odoi tested positive for the virus.
Now discussions are underway to try and work out how to complete the season.
But in the event of the campaign being scrapped entirely, the monetary implications could be massive.
The total cost to the 20 clubs collectively could be as much as £1.08bn – but none would lose as much as the Red Devils.
Overall, according to figures from the Daily Mail, the Old Trafford club would lose £116.4million.
That is made up of £48m from TV cash, £17.6m for matchday revenue and a further £50.8m from commercial and retail.
Local rivals Manchester City are second with £109.3m with Liverpool, who are 25 points clear at the top of the league – third with £102.6m.
The Reds would lose more in terms of revenue from the broadcasters than any of their top-flight rivals with £55.2m. United come out on top for matchday revenue, helped by having the biggest stadium, and commercial and retain income.
London powerhouses Chelsea (£91m), Tottenham (£83m) and Arsenal (£74.8m) ensure the traditional ‘big six’ take up the top six spots.
Leicester would not only see their Champions League dreams put on hold for at least another year but also miss out on £55.6m, more than the rest of the remaining sides.
The further down the Premier League table, the less clubs will earn in TV revenue meaning bottom-club Norwich would miss out on £14.6m.
However, the Mail suggest Sky TV may be willing to take a bit of a hit and not demand the entirety of their share of the £762m owed to broadcasters in what would be a hugely-popular move.
Similarly, other than the ‘big six’, West Ham and Newcastle, no club is expected to see damages of more than £3.8m from matchdays.
Burnley (£12.5m) and Everton (£7.2m) would be the other main losers from a commercial and retail perspective.
Overall, the current bottom three of Aston Villa, Bournemouth and Norwich would also be the three clubs to lose out the least should the season be axed.
The Cherries and Canaries, as well as Newcastle and Tottenham, are the Premier League clubs who have placed non-playing staff on furlough so far.
Runaway leaders Liverpool announced they would but then quickly made a sheepish U-turn after coming in for heavy criticism.
Manchester City and cross-town neighbours United have both told their staff they will continue to be paid in full and won’t face furlough.
For the likes of Burnley, there is a genuine worry about the club’s future should the financial implications of the virus be as bad as predicted.
The Premier League encouraged all players to take a 30 per cent wage cut but – while the players want to support the NHS financially at this difficult time – the PFA believe that would actually mean the government missed out on £200m in tax revenue.
Naturally, many will be determined to work out a way of getting the season completed.
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Although this certainly won’t be in early May, there have been various suggestions of getting the remaining 92 matches played in a short time frame with games every few days, various team camps in the Midlands and neutral grounds.
Fifa has already waived the usual June 1 deadline in which to finish the season, with the Premier League given the green light to play on well into the summer.
But while the season could be declared null and void in order to preserve the 2020/21 competitions, Uefa president Aleksander Ceferin insists he “can’t imagine a scenario” where Liverpool are not crowned champions.
Sean Dyche criticises Matt Hancock’s ‘massive generalisation’ as he warns MPs to lay off players
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
