CHERRIES will be chasing a jackpot of around £1.5million to reach the Championship – a figure dwarfed by the riches banked by the three clubs relegated from the Premier League.

Solidarity payments from the Football League have yet to be finalised for next season but, this year, League One clubs received £575,000 compared with £1,820,000 to those in the Championship.

And while the central distributions are almost certain to increase, a deal agreed this week will see clubs relegated from the Premier League receive in excess of £60m in parachute payments over four years.

Cherries will book a place in the second flight for only the second time in their history should they win their final two games of the season, against Carlisle and Tranmere.

Responding to the increase in parachute payments, Dean Court chairman Eddie Mitchell said: “There are pluses and minuses. I can understand why they do it and why they don’t distribute more funds further down the chain.

“If we want to keep attracting the best players in the world to this country then clubs have got to have the money to buy them and pay them. That is why they try to retain as much money as they can in the Premier League so it is the best in the world.

“While I can understand the reasoning behind it, the other extreme is that there are clubs in the Football League which have to survive on very little in comparison and some struggle to survive. I think all chairmen would like a bit more money.”

Mitchell was understandably reluctant to comment on the financial implications of Cherries being in the Championship but was happy to speak on a hypothetical basis.

He said: “If you are in a higher division, the increase in income comes with an increase in expenditure. If you go up, you get more but you pay more. If you go down, you get less and pay less.

“Clubs have to make a huge commitment to reach the Premier League and they still have those commitments if they come back down. Parachute payments help secure their future if they are not successful. Again, it is understandable and I think lots of clubs would be in trouble if they didn’t have an ongoing commitment from the Premier League.

“It gives them the edge because it means they can keep the players they would have signed while they were in the Premier League. I know it is considered unfair but I don’t think the payments are designed to give those clubs the opportunity to buy more players. They are designed to help them out with existing contracts.

“It falls down if those clubs then buy a load more players to get back into the Premier League and that is when all the trouble starts.”

Prize money in League One this season sees the winners receive £25,000 and the runners-up £10,000. There is no further prize money in the play-offs, while there are also no broadcast fees for either semi-finals or final.