As the new season nears kick-off, there is this genuine concern in the football world - is the English Premier League set to upset the apple cart of Europe?
With the new TV rights deal bringing unimaginable fortunes to the 20 teams in the EPL, other big clubs from Europe's top leagues are beginning to worry.
Revenue from broadcasters forms a huge chunk of moolah for a football franchise. The 20 English clubs will share 2.3 billion Euros in television rights for 3 years from the 2016-2017 season. Add the 900m Euros per year for international rights and the increase comes to a staggering 70 percent!
Just to put this in perspective, the winner of the French league Ligue1 will get 45 million Euros from broadcasters Canal+ and BeIn Sports. At the same time, the champions of England will pocket 210 million Euros!
At present eight English clubs are among the 20 richest in the world; in about two years time, that is expected to make up half the list.
EPL's revenue distribution is in stark contrast to how deals are cut in Europe's other big leagues.
In Spain, for example, Real Madrid and Barcelona pocket 70 percent of the TV revenue. That comes to nearly 150 million Euros. In Germany, Bayern Munich pocketed 37 million Euros in TV money as 2013/2014 champions. That is pittance when it comes to the revenues generated by the EPL.
What that ensures is the survival of even mid-table and weaker clubs that are able to cross the bridge between the Championship and the Premiership. In Spain's La Liga and Germany's Bundesliga the chasm between the top clubs and those below them is huge, forcing many smaller clubs - Real Zaragoza, Real Betis, Racing Santander. for example - into administration.
This influx of money attracts foreign talent - both coaches and players - thereby improving the quality of the league. However, when it comes to the Champions League, England clubs still lag behind European giants like Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Real Madrid.
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