Finance guru: New Liverpool plan is damaging as details emerge – ‘this shouldn’t happen’
It is easy to see why Liverpool are angling for a greater share of overseas TV rights – but a redistribution that favours the richest clubs is bad for football.
That is the view of finance expert Doctor Dan Plumley, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the possible re-think of how Premier League TV cash is dished out.
Money from foreign broadcast deals was split equally until the division’s biggest clubs successfully lobbied for a merit-based element in 2019.
Around £77million is allocated on these terms, and Liverpool trousered £162.3million in top-flight TV cash in 2021-22.
But per the Daily Mail reported last Friday (30 September), the so-called Big Six are now pushing for an even greater cut of the overseas deal.
Plumey explained why this “isn’t something we should be pushing for” given the already stark financial inequities in the English game.
“Nowadays, some of it is equal-share and some of it is based on where you finish in the league,” the Sheffield Hallam University expert told Football Insider’s Adam Williams.
“The bigger clubs have always wanted to shift that model more in their favour. That has been the sticking point.
“They managed to get a merit-based change through, but it’s no surprise to see them wanting more. From a pure eyes-on-screens point of view, they have probably got a point.
“But for me, that’s not the point. We have heralded the Premier League TV deal for it being more equal than others in Europe over the years. That has been partly because international rights have been shared equally.
“A move away from that would continue to stretch the financial gap between the Big Six and the rest. From a collective point of view, I don’t think that’s something we should be pushing for.”
In other news, Liverpool fear Luis Diaz “out for months” amid development today.