PARRY: WE NEED SOLUTIONS QUICKLY
EFL chairman Rick Parry has insisted he will do everything in his power to ensure clubs don’t go to the wall in the coming months.
With income streams decimated by the loss of fans inside grounds, all 72 EFL clubs have taken a major financial hit. It’s been estimated that they are collectively losing £25m a month. There were that supporters could begin to return to grounds in a phased basis next month, but that is now in serious jeopardy as coronavirus infections rise again and local lockdowns take place. It means clubs are facing a battle for survival.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today show, Parry said: “We will do our utmost to make sure (clubs going out of business) doesn’t happen, we don’t regard it as inevitable.
“The challenges are enormous, and we’re working literally night and day on trying to secure financial rescue packages for the short term and longer term.
“We do need rescue packages and we’re hoping that by securing them, we can secure the future of our clubs. Our aim is to keep every single one of them alive if at all possible.”
A request to the Prehopes mier League for £200m has been made, but Parry added: “The Premier League are certainly one of the parties that we are talking to, but not exclusively.
“We haven’t put all of our eggs in one basket. Our message is clear, the amounts that we need have been spelled out with clarity and with simplicity, but we need solutions really very quickly.
“This isn’t a matter of months away, this is a matter of we need solutions in the next few weeks.”
Government crowd pilots, with up to 1,000 fans, took place at Middlesbrough, Norwich, Blackpool, Charlton, Shrewsbury, Carlisle and Forest Green yesterday. Luton and Morecambe were also permitted to host pilots, but said they did not have enough time to prepare, while Hull’s was cancelled after a rising number of Covid-19 cases in the city.