Championship play-off final prize money: Leeds and Southampton do battle in Wembley showpiece dubbed 'richest game in football'

05/26/2024 08:00 AM

The Championship play-off final is often dubbed the ‘richest game in football’ and it will take centre-stage this afternoon.

At the end of a gruelling 49-game season, promotion to the Premier League will be the prize for one team, but there’s more on the line than just top flight action.

Leeds United will take on Southampton at Wembley in this year’s showpiece match, aiming to go straight back up.

Reaching the promised land brings each club a huge injection of cash as well as the chance to play against some of the world's best.

But just how lucrative is it to reach England’s top flight via the Wembley route? talkSPORT.com takes a look…

Championship play-off final prize money

Winning the Championship play-off final is worth an incredible amount.

It is not the money received directly from coming out on top in the game, it is actually the future benefits that the successful club will receive that make this the ‘richest game in football’.

Ahead of 2020’s showdown between future Premier League rivals Fulham and Brentford, Sports financial analysts Deloitte crunched the numbers.

They revealed promotion will mean an increase in revenue of at least £135million over the next three seasons for the triumphant club.

That could rise to £265m over five years if the club avoids relegation in their first season in the Premier League.

It remains the case in 2024 and Leeds take on Southampton knowing that a win would mean a gigantic financial boost for either club.

A lot of that money will come from TV and commercial payments for playing in the English top flight.

Each club receives an equal payment from domestic broadcast agreements, bringing in a whopping £31million just for being in the league.

The successful team is also likely to get around £60million from international agreements as well as £1.2million for every game shown live on TV.

Southampton and Leeds were both relegated from the Premier League last season and they were still awarded with over £100million each.

So both teams already know the benefits of top-flight football and an instant return will bring that money back to them.

Leeds vs Southampton: talkSPORT coverage 

This year’s play-off final will be played on Sunday, May 26 with kick-off at Wembley scheduled for 3pm.

talkSPORT will have live coverage from north London, with Adrian Durham serving as your presenter.

Commentary will come from Sam Matterface, former West Ham striker Dean Ashton and Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neill.

To tune in to talkSPORT through the website, click HERE for the live stream.

You can also listen via the talkSPORT app, on DAB digital radio, through your smart speaker and on 1089 or 1053 AM.

Leeds vs Southampton: Betting with talkSPORT BET

Match Odds:

Leeds – 6/5

Draw – 23/10

Southampton – 19/10

*odds subject to change

Alan Brazil’s Bet Builder – Summerville to score, both teams to score and over 2.5 goals – was 17/5 NOW 19/5