League agree £90m 'solidarity' windfall package

The Premier League have agreed a three-year 'solidarity package' under which it will pump millions - £31.8million of it next season - into youth development, community activities and the Football League's member clubs.

Scroll down to read more:

Lord Mawhinney is confident the investment will help particularly Coca-Cola Championship clubs compete with their more illustrious counterparts, with promoted clubs often struggling to negotiate the chasm in funding when they reach the top flight.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live's Sportsweek show: "We are very grateful. It was a generous gesture by the Premier League following a considerable number of weeks' discussion between Richard Scudamore and myself.

"All Football League clubs are going to benefit from this money, and we are very grateful.

"If you look at the position of the Football League today compared to four or five years ago, our sponsorship money is considerably up, our media contracts are significantly up.

"We now have a number of commercial partners that we did not have before. That's on the money side.

"On the sports side, for the last three years, we have had more than 16 million people through the turnstiles. Last season was the highest turnout for 47 years, and over 50 years in the Championship.

"It's easy to forget that the Football League has more customers through the turnstiles than any football league in Europe and, in financial terms, we are the fourth largest in Europe.

"More people watch our Championship - just the Championship - than watch Serie A in Italy.

"It is all relative. The Premier League is so big that not only does it dwarf all of the other leagues in Europe, but it makes us appear to be a very secondary league.

"Without the Premiership, we would be one of the major leagues in Europe.

"But the reality is that they are doing extremely well and they have thought, clearly, that it is not a waste of money to share some of their income with us on the basis that a strong Football League helps to build the pyramid on the top of which they sit."

The deal includes each season £5.4million for youth development, £4million for community investment, £11.2million to split between the Championship, League One and League Two clubs and extra cash when there are spare parachute payments.

Cardiff chairman Peter Ridsdale also welcomed the news, but admitted the gap is growing all the time.

He told the same programme: "The gap between the Premiership and the Championship is still such a big one that each year, you tend to find the same teams that come down go back up again.

"Last year, two of them that went down the season before came back up and the third one got to the play-off final.

"We have got to be able to compete on a level playing field - we can't do that as easily when the bottom team in the Premier League is getting £35million and we are getting somewhere between £1million and £2million.

"But clearly, it's a major step in the right direction and we are all very grateful."

Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore acknowledged the need for a strong Football League.

He said: "The Premier League and our member clubs recognise the importance of the continued health of the professional game at all levels.

"This solidarity payment means that Football League clubs will have the ability to increase investment in critical areas such as youth development and community programmes, as well as receiving an extra payment virtually equivalent to the one a Championship club receives from their own basic award.

"We feel this is a great deal for The Football League and one that we are pleased to have been able to do at this time."