Phil SumblerYesterday’s announcements by both the Welsh and Scottish government of reduced – or in the case of Wales – no crowds for live sporting events has bought a stark warning that Championship clubs could face ‘financial armageddon’ as a result.
The English government is expected to follow the suit of its Welsh and Scottish counterparts and bring in some severe restrictions for sporting crowds after Christmas and there is a real concern that the busy month of January could see football back behind closed doors once again.
Scottish clubs have already suggested bringing forward their winter break with Nicola Sturgeon announcing that the restrictions would last for up to three weeks but there is growing fears that the spread of the virus once again could see a more prolonged period of closure.
And it is the clear view of Millwall chief executive Steve Kavanagh that any period of closure could have a catastrophic impact on football clubs and particularly those at Championship level.
Football was largely played behind closed doors for 15 months prior to this season with clubs reliant on supporters buying matchday streams to at least try and hold up matchday income and this season, the return of crowds, has been one of the highlights to clubs both from a revenue but also an enjoyment perspective.
Now, just halfway through the season, the stark reality is that games will be going ahead with very minimal crowds at best. At least for a few weeks.
Kavanagh told the PA News agency “The bigger concern to me than getting the games on is the financial implications of going behind closed doors or even with reduced crowds.
“That is a dark cloud that is looming for football. We saw in the Championship last year all we got were loans and that feels like an £8million millstone that has been hung around our necks at the moment.
“We have no financial support as other industries – even League One and Two got grants and some of those clubs managed to make profits during that period. You then have the Championship that is on its knees and the Premier League, who have spent £1billion in the transfer market.
“I worry about going behind closed doors and I even worry about even socially-distanced crowds, because the financial consequences on a league that is already known to be a financial basket case could be really quite dramatic.
“It is not as easy as having socially-distanced reduced crowds, it is not that easy, but that doesn’t mean we should go to no crowds because that is financial Armageddon.
“Please don’t leave it to the Premier League to make a decision over whether the Championship are or aren’t a deserving case. It is a complex argument and someone has to make a decision and help.
“If they don’t, we risk our clubs, which are community assets, being financially stricken for the long term, so it endangers them or worse we risk our clubs going into administration and out of business. I am not saying that lightly or as a threat but people have to listen.
“We have got through to where we are out of the goodness of the owners’ hearts, all of them have been brilliant, but you can’t keep relying on these people to bail out community assets. They need help in doing so if we get into that situation, but let’s hope we don’t.”
