Coronavirus: EFL offers £50m to help clubs as Trophy final postponed The English Football League is to release a £50m short-term relief fund to help clubs with cash-flow issues because of the coronavirus outbreak. The fund includes the early release of award payments, and an interest-free loan facility. The announcement was made after an EFL board meeting called to discuss the impact of the outbreak on clubs. The Leasing.com Trophy final between Portsmouth and Salford City, scheduled for 5 April, has also been postponed. Under the terms of the relief fund, Championship clubs will receive their remaining £800,000 award payment from the Premier League on Thursday. In addition, they will be able to apply for a £584,000 interest-free loan. For League One clubs the figures are £250,000 and £183,000, and for League Two sides they are £164,000 and £120,000. An additional £1m from the EFL Futures pot, a scheme which rewards clubs for giving opportunities to home-grown young players, will be allocated now on a pro-rata basis. On Friday, all EFL matches were postponed until 3 April at the earliest because of the outbreak. [JLA Note - now pushed to April 30] The EFL has stressed its commitment to finishing the 2019-20 season "in order to protect competition integrity." The 47 League One and League Two clubs told the EFL on Tuesday that they face an estimated combined loss of £50m if the campaign cannot restart before the summer. Championship clubs are also unanimously behind trying to complete the season after all 24 second-tier sides held a video conference on Tuesday. "As part of the League's continued contingency planning, the board heard the comments and observations from EFL clubs, before discussing a number of issues including the current financial position and implications, insurance, regulatory matters and broadcasting arrangements," an EFL statement read. "Discussions centred on financial relief for clubs in the short term and while there is no one single solution, measures are to be put in place to immediately assist with cash flow via a £50m short-term relief package." Kelvin Thomas, chairman of League Two side Northampton Town, told BBC Sport: "The EFL decisions today are very useful short-term measures for clubs and it seems like there are more conversations being had, and to be had, in the background with other stakeholders. "I think when the EFL and clubs have a better idea of what the future holds, we will be able to make more informed decisions." The EFL has set up a dedicated task force that will continue to review the threat posed by the coronavirus pandemic and the impact on its clubs and competitions.
Im sticking to my prediction all sports will lose a year. Well be finishing this season this time next year. Only drawback is Pablo will be 68 by then
... however Tyler Roberts will slip on a banana skin and do his acl just before the restart. And Adam foreshaw will still be just a few weeks away from full fitness
Southampton's chief executive has suggested Premier League matches could be on television every day while people are still confined to their homes because of the coronavirus outbreak. Martin Semmens says the return of the top flight - currently suspended until at least 30 April - would be "a sign that the country is coming back to normal" but it should not happen before it is safe. "We have to do what is right and safe for the general public," he told BBC Radio Solent. "When everybody is safe and we're not using up NHS and police resources, the government would like us to get back to playing because we are entertainment and a sign that the country is coming back to normal. "If people are home for another month and Premier League football is on the TV every day that can only be a good thing. Not because we are more essential than the NHS but because we can give people entertainment and show that we're fighting back." Semmens said teams are hopeful of completing the league by the end of June but did not yet know when play would resume. Some players will be out of contract on 30 June, but Semmens believes players could be convinced to stay for longer should play continue beyond that point "We hope to get the league done by the end of June," Semmens added. "As soon as you go past that date, there are legal challenges. "If we ended up playing until 15 July and you had to extend a player's contract by two weeks, convincing a player to play two more weeks of football and get paid nicely to do it - I don't believe that will be a substantial challenge. "The challenge is making sure we don't have a knock-on effect to other seasons and make football compromised for years to come."
If I was an out of contract player, there's no way I'd re-sign for such a short period. The possibility of injury ending your chance of signing for another club for a full season would be foremost in your mind, and would probably (but not always) be a risk not worth taking.
That's why the rule that players in their last year (contract wise) can only sign a pre-contract with an overseas club during the January window needs to change. As has been previously discussed it puts players in a really awkward position playing without the safety net of a contract and the possibilty of a career threatening injury with just one bad tackle.
