Lincoln City CEO Liam Scully has revealed just how the club will benefit from the financial boost they will receive from the Carabao Cup third round clash against Chelsea tomorrow night.
The Imps welcome the Club World Cup winners to the LNER Stadium full of confidence. Their recent form has seen them gone 10 games unbeaten in all competitions, whilst they have lost just once all season.
This has seen Michael Skubala’s team climb to third in League One following an excellent 3-1 win over Luton Town on Saturday. The manner of the victory was perhaps the most pleasing aspect of the afternoon for the head coach, with the former Premier League outfit largely outclassed in a one-sided encounter.
Liam Scully Details ‘Significant Financial Benefit’
It was a productive transfer window for Lincoln, who generated some serious income for a League One team. They first sold Ethan Erhahon to Bolton Wanderers for around £750,000 before Jovon Makama made the switch to Norwich City for a club record £1.5 million.
Some of this was invested back into the playing squad, with midfielder Ivan Varfolomeev joining from Slovan Liberec for an undisclosed fee which was also believed to be a club record. According to City AM, another £250,000 will now be heading their way after Sky’s decision to broadcast the tie against Chelsea. Speaking to the publication, CEO Liam Scully detailed the boost:
“Cup ties like this are huge first and foremost for what it means to our players, staff, fans and community, but there is also significant financial benefit which comes with facing a team like Chelsea.
“The revenue which will be generated as a result of a single fixture like this across gate share, broadcasting and commercial deals will be a considerable outlier to previous seasons and allow for us to invest back into the club.
“To put that into perspective, for most League One clubs, a draw against one of the Premier League’s top six could be considered equivalent to a top sponsorship or naming rights deal.”
Continuing, he highlighted just what that means to a club the size of Lincoln, who received an enormous pay day as a non league club when they reached the FA Cup quarter final in 2017:
“You just need to rewind a few years to see exactly what that can do too.
“The money generated from that cup run allowed us to build a new training ground, an investment which we are seeing returns on with record sales made this summer from academy products.”
Writer’s View
Lincoln are arguably one of the most well run clubs in League One. They have continuously punched above their weight and appear on course to better that this season. The money they have generated over the past few months will stand them in good stead, where they continue to harbour ambitions of reaching the Championship.
