Latest Coventry City news as Championship line-up is confirmed for the 2024/25 season and clubs are deep into preparations for summer transfer window.
Leeds United will be forced to sell before they can buy this summer after missing out on a £140 million windfall by losing the Championship play-off final.
Leeds will receive their second year of parachute payments – 45 per cent of the central broadcasting distribution that is received by every Premier League club, compared to 55 per cent in the first year down – but they owe other clubs £190m in transfer fee instalments while they are only due to receive £2m in player sales.
“Outstanding transfer fee creditors of £190m mean that Leeds will have to pay for old player acquisitions before they can spend this summer,” said football finance expert Kieran Maguire, who suggested that cash flow could be a challenge but funding from owners 49’Ers and players sales “should see them through”.
In terms of Financial Fair Play, Leeds are allowed to record losses of up to £61m over a rolling three-year period including 2024/25 compared to £83m up to 2023/24 because the limits are different between the top two divisions.
Championship clubs have voted this summer to extend the three-year limit from £39m to £41.5m to take into account inflation.
Burnley, Sheffield United and Luton Town will be due just under £50m each in parachute payments in their first year back down. Burnley’s coffers could be further boosted by compensation of about £10m from Bayern Munich for manager Vincent Kompany.
Luton are set to use a large chunk of the cash they have generated over the last 12 months to fund a new stadium.
Takeover talk continues at Sheff Utd, who will start the season on minus-two points due to previous breaches of FFP. Prospective new owners – there is apparently interest from the United States and Saudi Arabia – have reportedly already influenced a U-turn on a decision to trigger a contract option to keep midfielder Ben Osborn.
Sheff Utd were on the brink of administration before promotion in 2023 and the club’s “modest transfer spend” last summer has “allowed them to reset financially and even though they may not be awash with cash as things stand”, according to the Star.
Manager Chris Wilder said earlier this month: “We’re not dead, the club’s not going to go under. We’re not in a position financially that other clubs are in, with points taken off them left, right and centre and breaking rules here, there and everywhere. We’re a sustainable club and we have to make sure that we have a positive pre-season and get the positive feel back.”
West Bromwich Albion have released seven senior players and are in talks with three key first teamers as they adjust to what will be a totally different financial reality.
The 2024/25 season will be the first time Albion have either not been in the Premier League or in the Championship with parachute payments, which were first introduced in 2006/07. This will be the club’s fourth year down and it will be interesting to see how much they can offer to try to retain big earners – or at least previously big earners – like Alex Mowatt and Kyle Bartley.
Norwich, who were relegated in 2022, are heading into their third and final year of parachute payments, believed to be about £16.5 million, and have released players who are believed to have been at the higher end of their wage budget if they have been at the end of their contracts. Ben Gibson, who started 35 games, and Dimitris Giannoulis, who started 31, are gone.
Watford are also heading into their third year of parachutes on the back of finishing 15th, having recently appointed Tom Cleverley as their fifth head coach since they dropped out of the top flight.
Coventry will likely have to find the resources to replace another key player this summer. The last few months have shown there is life after Viktor Gyokeres and Gustavo Hamer but now supporters have had to come to terms with the imminent loss of Callum O’Hare. The quantity of deals will not be as high as in 2023 but it is still likely to be busy.
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