05-12-2019, 11:18
I'm not especially convinced that parachute payments turn the Championship into a closed shop, not least because most of the money seems to go into absorbing the various shortfalls in daily costs for a relegated club. If it reached the stage where two of every three teams that go down were bouncing straight back up every season then I'd agree that it's a problem, but most of the time it's mid-table mediocrity for a couple of seasons at best, while some (e.g. Sunderland and Stoke) go into outright crisis.
"I would rather spend a holiday in Tuscany than in the Black Country, but if I were compelled to choose between living in West Bromwich or Florence, I should make straight for West Bromwich." - J.B. Priestley