MINISTERS “expect” Premier League clubs to help smaller clubs after fans were banned from stadiums until next year.
Boris Johnson has scuppered plans to get supporters back on the terraces next month.
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Football fans have been banned from stadiums until next yearCredit: Getty Images – Getty
Now the Government has asked the wealthier outfits to step in while it negotiates a wider bailout to the sports industry.
Clubs in the lower leagues face a turbulent financial future as, unlike Premier League giants, they rely on ticket sales.
Under the PM’s new Covid plans, pilots allowing 1,000 fans into EFL matches are ditched.
Sports bodies want the Government to support the industry as it did with the arts, which was given access to a £1.57billion package.
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden is said to be trying to “identify ways we can support sport”.
Today the Premier League said they were “disappointed” fans would not be allowed in next month and said stadiums were safer than many other public spaces.
Boris Johnson has scuppered plans to get supporters back on the terraces next monthCredit: Sky News
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden is said to be trying to ‘identify ways we can support sport’Credit: Getty Images – Getty
The Sun Says
RICH Premier League clubs should bail out lower league outfits facing Covid oblivion.
They are not just the lifeblood of their communities. They and their players are, in part, the lifeblood of the Prem too.
Some have rich owners, who must dig deep now that they are facing a season without fans. But many teams don’t.
It would be a calamity to let them fail through no fault of their own.
A few, admittedly, are badly run — and the Prem would need strict guarantees on how a £200million donation would be spent by the 72 EFL clubs.
Some people will say the Government should step in. But it cannot bail out every industry. That way lies ruin. In football’s case there’s another solution.
It’s right for wealthy Prem giants to fund a rescue. It’s in the national interest and their own too.
In a statement they said: “Football is not the same without attending fans and the football economy is unsustainable without them.
“Last season, Premier League clubs suffered £700m in losses and at present, our national game is losing more than £100m per month.
“This is starting to have a devastating impact on clubs and their communities.”
Boris Johnson reveals new restrictions on sporting events
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
