Hull City and Middlesbrough to compete for the biggest financial prize in world football

Hull City and Middlesbrough to compete for the biggest financial prize in world football

• The winner of Saturday’s Championship Play-Off Final between Hull City and Middlesbrough will secure the final place in the 2026/27 Premier League;
• The promoted side stands to receive a revenue uplift of at least £205m across the next three seasons, according to analysis by Deloitte’s Sports Business Group;
• This figure could rise to c.£365m if the club survives the first season in the Premier League.

This Saturday (23 May 2026), Hull City and Middlesbrough will go head-to-head in the most valuable single match in world football.

Both teams will be hoping to join Championship winners Coventry City, who returned to the top flight after a 25-year absence, and Ipswich Town, who secured automatic promotion and an immediate return to the Premier League following relegation last season.

According to analysis from Deloitte’s Sports Business Group, the winning side stands to receive a revenue uplift of at least £205m across the next three seasons. This could rise to more than £365m if the club avoids relegation after their first season in the Premier League.

This analysis is comprised of projected increases in matchday, broadcast and commercial revenues.

Hull City and Middlesbrough last appeared in the Premier League in the 2016/17 season. They can expect revenue uplifts of at least £205m and £210m respectively should they gain promotion. With neither club otherwise in receipt of parachute payments, this uplift is greater than when recently relegated sides return to the Premier League. Both clubs will be hoping to secure promotion this year before the play-offs are expanded from four to six teams next season.

Tim Bridge, lead partner of Deloitte’s Sports Business Group, said: "Irrespective of the events of the last couple of weeks, this fixture is always one of the most eagerly anticipated in the football calendar, representing the biggest financial prize in world football, with additional revenues of at least £205 million over the next three seasons at stake.

“This year's final brings together Hull City and Middlesbrough, two clubs that last competed in the Premier League almost a decade ago. Promotion brings with it the hope of establishing a foothold in the highest revenue-generating football league in the world and, critically, surviving that first campaign back at the highest level.

“Despite ongoing discussions regarding financial distribution and its impact on competitive balance across English football, it's notable that three of this season's Championship play-off contenders, including both finalists, were not in receipt of parachute payments,” added Bridge. “Furthermore, only one of the two automatically promoted sides had recently benefited from a top flight campaign. Whilst this demonstrates the robust and ever-expanding competitiveness within the division, and indeed English football more broadly, consideration of the long-term impact of financial polarisation on competitive balance needs constant attention.”

ENDS