With the 25th season of the Premier League now done and dusted, the time has come for the club’s boards to count the cash that has come in before the season officially comes to an end with the onset of summer. England’s top flight is such a lucrative prospect that it is no wonder that clubs do all they can to avoid relegation.
Bigger television deals signed in the last couple of years has seen money come pouring in, thanks especially to a foreign audience that is hooked on to the action in England’s various club stadiums over nine months. The rights to telecast the league was bought for as high as £8.3bn (over three seasons) and an audience of billions of people across over 200 countries watch the action every weekend.
How much did each club earn in prize money?
This amounts to a lot of money which is distributed to all 20 clubs in the league. While the amount that each club receives can vary depending on their popularity and hence the number of games that are shown live on television, each club does get an equal share of at least £84.4m – miles ahead of any other top league in Europe. Even the worst team of the season is guaranteed at least that much which makes bouncing back from the Championship to the Premier League next season all the more easier.
As Chelsea were crowned champions on Sunday, they come away with £153.2m thanks to 28 games being shown live on television (domestic). By virtue of finishing first, they also won £38.4m. In contrast, Sunderland received only £1.9m for finishing last. The worst club receives £1.9m and the clubs above them get £1.9m per position above them.
| # | CLUB | TOTAL PL INCOME |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chelsea | £153.2m |
| 2 | Tottenham Hotspur | £148.5m |
| 3 | Manchester City | £149.4m |
| 4 | Liverpool | £148.4m |
| 5 | Arsenal | £142.7m |
| 6 | Manchester United | £143.6m |
| 7 | Everton | £132.4m |
| 8 | Southampton | £127.6m |
| 9 | West Bromwich Albion | £122.0m |
| 10 | Bournemouth | £121.9m |
| 11 | Leicester City | £122.8m |
| 12 | West Ham | £119.9m |
| 13 | Crystal Palace | £117.1m |
| 14 | Stoke City | £111.4m |
| 15 | Burnley | £109.5m |
| 16 | Watford | £110.4m |
| 17 | Swansea City | £105.7m |
| 18 | Hull | £103.7m |
| 19 | Middlesbrough | £104.6m |
| 20 | Sunderland | £99.9m |
Manchester United break the £1 billion mark in prize money
With so much money coming in every season, Manchester United have now crossed the £1 billion mark in prize money. Having won the title in 13 of the 25 seasons so far, they are ahead of the rest in terms of prize money.
Only six clubs have played all 25 seasons of the Premier League without getting relegated – United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, and Everton. Even Manchester City were relegated back in 2001 – much before new owners invested billions to turn the club into title contenders. Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Spurs, and City will certainly cross the £1 billion mark next season.
The influx of television money will see all clubs thrive and will be flush with cash to spend in the summer (although that does lead to inflation in the transfer market leading to high transfer fees for mediocre players).
| # | CLUB | SEASONS | OVERALL TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester United | 25 | £1.01bn |
| 2 | Arsenal | 25 | £985.5m |
| 3 | Chelsea | 25 | £968.6m |
| 4 | Liverpool | 25 | £963.8m |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 25 | £898.8m |
| 6 | Manchester City | 20 | £872.9m |
| 7 | Everton | 25 | £832.7m |
| 8 | West Ham | 21 | £705.2m |
| 9 | Newcastle United | 22 | £690.4m |
| 10 | Aston Villa | 24 | £690.2m |
Data courtesy of Sporting Intel
