Counting the cost if City are relegated

MILLIONS AT STAKE ON FINAL DAY

- By BARRY COOPER

Hull City have one game left to secure their survival in the Championship and know three points at Portsmouth would be enough to remain in the league.

A draw could be enough if results elsewhere go their way, but defeat sends them back to League One after a desperate season.

While fans will be angry, frustrated and feeling a lot of negative emotions if the worst does happen, there will be wider implications for the business and owner Acun Ilicali, given the club have been losing around £500,000 per week based on the most recent set of accounts.

Financially, relegation will hit the club hard and a host of cuts would need to be made to the playing budget and those behind the scenes, which will almost certainly impact regular staff, both permanent and seasonal, with crowds next season likely to drop significantly.

Here, we take a look at the impact of relegation on the club's finances....

Broadcast revenue, basic awards and solidarity payments

There is a significant drop-off when it comes to TV money in the Championship compared to League One, and that's something that will hit Ilicali hard.

A five-year, £935m domestic broadcast deal with Sky Sports covers all three divisions of the EFL with more than 1,000 matches broadcast annually. However, there is a contrast in how money is distributed.

Championship clubs brought in roughly £2.5m from the EFL's old TV deal per season, while it's between £3-4m for the new deal, plus per-match fees which could represent anywhere between £500,000 and £1.5m per season.

The EFL's international TV rights deal is also noteworthy, worth at least £148m and could add between £1m and £2m to the TV revenue pot before the deal.

Solidarity payments also account for a huge portion of Championship clubs' income.