Brighton windfall is welcomed
POMPEY have pocketed a £100,000 Carabao Cup windfall – despite their elimination.
The Blues lost 4-0 at Premier League Brighton in last Thursday night’s secondround encounter.
However, in recognition of the fixture being televised by Sky, the club received a payment of £100,000.
For Pompey, it represents crucial income at a time when plans to reintroduce supporters into Premier League and Football League games have been shelved.
Although iFollow offers the Blues another income stream, it is understood to reach five figures per game.
Financially, it is significantly smaller than the sum received for featuring in a Carabao Cup broadcast on Sky.
Putting last Thursday’s windfall into further context, the winners of the EFL Trophy collect the same figure – £100,000.
Meanwhile, victories at group stages in the competition net the winner £10,000, while draws yield £5,000 to both teams.
In contrast, this season’s FA Cup will award £82,000 to winners of third-round fixtures.
Arsenal claimed £3.6m for beating Chelsea in last season’s FA Cup final – yet that prize money has been reduced to £1.8 this term.
Football clubs outside the Premier League are desperately struggling in the coronavirus climate.
Pompey chief executive Mark Catlin has repeatedly claimed the club are experiencing a shortfall of £700,000 a month during the season, when compared to their usual revenue.
That is compared to a profit of £2.1m announced in the weeks ahead of the first coronavirus lockdown in March.
Pompey are next in cup action on Tuesday, October 6, when they travel to League Two Southend in an EFL Trophy group fixture.
They have already collected £10,000 from the competition, following a 2-0 victory over Colchester at Fratton Park earlier this month.
The Blues will enter the FA Cup at the first round stage which takes place in November.
Should Pompey progress to round two, which they have done in the previous two seasons, they would collect £22,629 in prize money and that would then increase by almost £12,000 if they were to reach the third round.
– NEIL ALLEN