Big Picture plan ‘ ticks all the boxes’

A MAJORITY of Championship clubs would welcome the proposals put forward in Project Big Picture as it would help to bridge the financial chasm between the Premier League and EFL, believes Rotherham United chairman Tony Stewart.

The plans are being driven by Liverpool and Manchester United and are supported by EFL chairman Rick Parry but the proposals have not been met with widespread acceptance.

There is a fear that accepting the plans would give the so- called big six in the Premier League too great a say on the game’s governance but with a handful of Football League clubs on the verge of going bust, Stewart argues that Project Big Picture is the best way forward.

The Millers chairman feels that the proposals can level the playing field and more closely align the Premier League and the EFL.

The plans offer a £ 250m rescue package, which is to be made immediately available to the EFL, as well as a 25 per cent cut in future broadcast deals.

Those proposals have been largely welcomed but it is what is wanted in return that is the sticking point.

The plan asks that the Premier League be cut from 20 to 18 teams, with the Championship, League One and League Two each retaining 24 teams.

Only two clubs will be automatically relegated from the top flight while the 16th- placed team joins the Championship play- offs in place of the sixth- placed secondtier club.

The League Cup and Community Shield would be abolished but one benefit in Stewart’s view is that parachute payments would be scrapped.

The Millers chairman feels those payments to clubs recently relegated from the top flight provide an uneven playing field in the EFL and he strongly believes that Project Big Picture would be backed by the majority of Championship clubs.

“I think there is a very, very strong chance that it would go through,” he insisted.

“There can be up to nine clubs at any one time receiving parachute payments. That is unsettling.

“It is not a fair advantage to the clubs already in those divisions.

“It has always been this problem. You are trying to be ambitious but you are on a hiding to nothing because parachute payments don’t give a level playing field.”

He continued: “What has happened for a long time is that the Premier League, through their very successful marketing, has driven a big gap between the EFL and the Premier League.

“People look at the Premier League and see the wages and salaries and millions spent on players, we look on in the EFL and it seems a joke to us.

“It is unreasonable. What we need, as the feeding stock to the Premier League, we need those gaps to get closer and this is a solution to get it nearer to where it should be.”

The Covid- 19 pandemic has hit every club in the pocket.

Stewart has previously warned of the dire situation at a number of Football League clubs, with no money from season tickets, matchday revenue or sponsorship coming in.

However, the outgoings have not dried up and the £ 250m rescue fund and a greater share of future TV revenue could prove a sustainable way forward for a lot of clubs.

A solution needs to be reached quickly, warns Stewart, as any further delay could be too late for some clubs.

“We are all suffering, some more than others, because we have got no income from season tickets and sponsorship is dire,” he added.

“We are putting a show out there but we are not getting paid for it.

“It is very dire and it is serious and I have said that at least half a dozen clubs will go bust this month if something doesn’t happen very quickly.

“The problem started in March, we are now seven months down the line.”

The Premier League have voiced their concerns about the plans, stating: “A number of the individual proposals in the plan published could have a damaging impact on the whole game and we are disappointed to see that Rick

Parry, Chair of the EFL, has given his on- the- record support.”

FA Chairman Greg Clarke has also expressed his unease surrounding the proposals.

“We, the FA Board and Council, have to ensure that any changes would be to the long- term benefit of the whole of football and we have substantial controls to help ensure that the best interests of the game are served by any new proposals,” he said yesterday.

“However, there is more to our game than economics. Change must benefit clubs, fans and players, not just selective balance sheets. In these difficult times unity, transparency and common purpose must override the interests of the few.”

Stewart does not share that view, insisting: “It is the best idea that ticks all the boxes but not only for now but for the future.”

I think there is a very, very strong chance that it would go through. Rotherham United chairman Tony Stewart on benefits of Project Big Picture.