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The cost of Premier League Football

Fri Jun 20, 2025 9:44 am

I am just reading that newly promoted Leeds United have a £150 million budget to remain in the Premier League and are proposing to spend £35m on Muniz and £20m on another.

and reading this....

I really cant see Vincent Tan ever wanting to be in a position to want to pay that sort of money for Premier League football.

What would a 3 year push to the Premier League Cost?

Fri Jun 20, 2025 10:30 am

Subject: How much would it cost Vincent Tan to get Cardiff promoted and stay in the Premier League?

With the assistance of ChatGPT Just did a deep dive into what it might realistically cost Vincent Tan to fund a three-year push to get us out of League One, up through the Championship, and then survive a season in the Premier League. Here’s a breakdown for anyone curious:


Year 1 – League One (2025-26)
Objective: Automatic promotion

Average League One club revenue: £9m

Needed wage budget: £11-13m

Other costs (running, bonuses): £6-7m

Likely owner subsidy: £12-15m

Net transfer spend: £3-5m

Total Tan outlay: ~£15-20m

Clubs like Ipswich and Derby have recently gone big in this league with £15-30m losses. We’re a big club at this level, so to go straight back up, expect a push of around £15-20m.



Year 2 – Championship (2026-27)
Objective: Win promotion

Average revenue: £30-35m

Needed wage bill: £30-40m (Leeds/Soton level)

Other costs: £10-12m

Monthly losses at this level (based on last season): £3-4m

Likely owner subsidy: £35-45m

Net transfer spend to compete: £15-25m

Total Tan outlay: ~£50-70m

Getting out of the Championship is tough, especially when parachute-payment clubs are throwing money around. Think Leeds/Southampton-sized spend if we want to do it in one season.



Year 3 – Premier League (2027-28)
Objective: Avoid relegation

Revenue (mostly from TV money): £95-110m

Needed wage bill to stay up: £55-65m

Other running costs: £20m

Net transfer spend needed: £80-120m

Owner subsidy: Depends on net spend – operationally break-even possible

Total Tan outlay: ~£80-120m

Leeds are planning a £150m war chest if they go up; Forest spent ~£100m; Luton tried to do it on £60m and went down. If we want to stay up, the initial investment is massive.



Total 3-Year Project Cost for Vincent Tan:

Low case (everything goes right): £145m

Realistic case: £180m

High case (bigger spend to stay up): £215m

With stadium/training upgrades + contingency: £200-250m



Summary
If Tan wants to bankroll a fast-track return and make us stick in the Prem, he’s realistically looking at £200 million+ in new investment over the next three seasons. Otherwise, we’ll need a miracle like Ipswich or Luton pulled off (with some luck, good recruitment, and a lot of momentum).

Thoughts?

Re: What would a 3 year push to the Premier League Cost?

Fri Jun 20, 2025 12:56 pm

Paul Keevil wrote:Subject: How much would it cost Vincent Tan to get Cardiff promoted and stay in the Premier League?

With the assistance of ChatGPT Just did a deep dive into what it might realistically cost Vincent Tan to fund a three-year push to get us out of League One, up through the Championship, and then survive a season in the Premier League. Here’s a breakdown for anyone curious:


Year 1 – League One (2025-26)
Objective: Automatic promotion

Average League One club revenue: £9m

Needed wage budget: £11-13m

Other costs (running, bonuses): £6-7m

Likely owner subsidy: £12-15m

Net transfer spend: £3-5m

Total Tan outlay: ~£15-20m

Clubs like Ipswich and Derby have recently gone big in this league with £15-30m losses. We’re a big club at this level, so to go straight back up, expect a push of around £15-20m.



Year 2 – Championship (2026-27)
Objective: Win promotion

Average revenue: £30-35m

Needed wage bill: £30-40m (Leeds/Soton level)

Other costs: £10-12m

Monthly losses at this level (based on last season): £3-4m

Likely owner subsidy: £35-45m

Net transfer spend to compete: £15-25m

Total Tan outlay: ~£50-70m

Getting out of the Championship is tough, especially when parachute-payment clubs are throwing money around. Think Leeds/Southampton-sized spend if we want to do it in one season.



Year 3 – Premier League (2027-28)
Objective: Avoid relegation

Revenue (mostly from TV money): £95-110m

Needed wage bill to stay up: £55-65m

Other running costs: £20m

Net transfer spend needed: £80-120m

Owner subsidy: Depends on net spend – operationally break-even possible

Total Tan outlay: ~£80-120m

Leeds are planning a £150m war chest if they go up; Forest spent ~£100m; Luton tried to do it on £60m and went down. If we want to stay up, the initial investment is massive.



Total 3-Year Project Cost for Vincent Tan:

Low case (everything goes right): £145m

Realistic case: £180m

High case (bigger spend to stay up): £215m

With stadium/training upgrades + contingency: £200-250m



Summary
If Tan wants to bankroll a fast-track return and make us stick in the Prem, he’s realistically looking at £200 million+ in new investment over the next three seasons. Otherwise, we’ll need a miracle like Ipswich or Luton pulled off (with some luck, good recruitment, and a lot of momentum).

Thoughts?



Getting to premier is the easier thing to do staying there is the hardest part now! Efl and Championship in particular have got a problem upto 50% of solidarity payments go on parachute payments Ipswich got 29m parachute plus 30m for selling players now that is one massive advantage that distorts Championship.... more relegated sides with parachute payments will make the top 6 so leaving very few clubs to try and break monopoly .....Leeds lucky can afford 150m not many other promoted sides can .