In a few weeks’ time 90 minutes is all that stands between failure and the world of riches for some football clubs. Juventus, Real Madrid, Bayern or Barcelona will all battle for a place in the final of arguably the world’s biggest football trophy, The Champions League.
But, over the water and into deepest Norfolk and West London, you will find four English football clubs vying for a place in arguably the world’s best league; the Premier League. Norwich entertain local rivals Ipswich whilst Brentford will accommodate Middlesbrough in the semi-finals. The winners will face each other at Wembley in what is the richest game in football, worth approximately £90 million, in comparison to the potential £50 million gains for the Champions League winners.
Champions League Final or Championship Play-Off Final?
Fans and chairmen may have different responses when asked which they would rather win.
A team such as Bolton Wanderers, a founding member of the original Football League, profited greatly by yo-yoing between the top two divisions every other year or so, whilst still retaining parachute payments from the Premier League to ensure they could finish high up in the Championship.
The money does not stop there though; if relegation is staved off, the following season the club gets richer and more lucrative sponsorship deals ensue.
An example of the importance of being in the top flight came at the end of the 2012/13 season, when Norwich City, having retained Premier League status weeks earlier, went to the Etihad and beat the previous year’s champions Manchester City 3-2 in their own backyard. For many City fans, this seemed like an end-of-season friendly, and a chance to thank the players for all their hard work, but shortly after the game, in the director’s box, a mighty roar erupted. The game had finished, so it was not another goal, but instead the world-famous cook Delia Smith and her board of directors, who were toasting the success of finishing eleventh, two places higher than at start of the day and thus securing an extra £2m.
The quest to overturn the big guns and break into Europe is a real possibility; Swansea City and Wigan Athletic have both done so in recent years. Admission to Europe was always possible for the Swans through the Welsh Cup, but then the Capital One Cup was their first major trophy: next stop was Europe with credibility. The riches of the play-off final ensured better names were attracted, whilst they retained some home grown players. Today they are established in the Premier League’s mid-table, and have the players to continue to achieve and overcome some of the biggest names in the world of football and surprise one or two of them on their day.
So whilst we eagerly await the likes of Tevez, Ronaldo, Robben and Messi showing off the guile and flair which long has graced European football, there are some other players who only twelve months ago would have thought Europe was for the summer months only.
The lesser-known names of Lewis Grabban (Norwich), Luke Varney (Ipswich), Scott Hogan (Brentford) and Patrick Bamford (Middlesbrough) will no doubt be the ones whose fans rely on them to shoot their way to Wembley and into the stadia of Chelsea, Manchester City and United, Arsenal and Liverpool next season.
