Preston North End advisor Peter Ridsdale calls for overhaul in how cash is distributed among clubs in future

How money is distributed down the game’s pyramid has long been debated.

The English game is in its seventh week without games, the season in the Premier League and EFL having been halted on March 13.

It is creating cash-flow problems at many clubs and even the most optimistic guess at the season resuming is more than a month away.

Ridsdale, who advises PNE owner Trevor Hemmings, spoke at length on BBC 5 Live Sport on the subject.

He thinks the financial health of the game could be improved with a better flow of cash from the Premier League into the EFL.

Ridsdale, who came to North End in December 2011, said: “There is no doubt that Premier League football has a massive economic impact on the city and area it operates in.

“I do think, however, this is a real opportunity to try and correct some of the problems of finances within football by seeing some of the cash in the Premier League flow down through the leagues.

“The bottom team in the Premier League gets £96m and another £93m parachute payments over three seasons.

“In the Championship teams get £7m, in League One £1.5m and in League Two £1m.

“That is a disproportionate flow of cash that needs to be corrected and there is no better time than now.”

While Ridsdale might look to be banging the drum for the EFL, he thinks a better cash flow would benefit some of the Premier League clubs too.

“Three teams get relegated from the Premier League every season,” said Ridsdale.

“At the moment there is a massive cliff edge, there is Armageddon when teams are relegated unless they have a billionaire owner who can keep them going.

“If we got a smoother flow of cash from the Premier League down, it doesn’t just help clubs in the Championship, League One and League Two, it also helps those teams in the Premier League who might be facing relegation.

“I’m not suggesting the Premier League has to give up all their riches, merely a smoother distribution to make sure the game as a whole can survive.

“If we go on much longer in the current lockdown, there is a risk that many teams will disappear.

“For some that would be because of the way they have been managed but for others because they can’t manage without any income.

“There are clubs in League One and League Two which are well managed but they are suffering. Surely for the good of the game we want to make sure the whole game thrives.”