Charlton Athletic is one of many English Football League clubs looking to benefit from the Premier League’s ‘New Deal’.
Charlie Methven, co-owner of Charlton Athletic, is thought to have apologised to West Ham following a furious diatribe against the club and Crystal Palace after the Premier League failed to reach an agreement on an £836 million financial settlement with the English Football League.
The 20 Premier League clubs met on Monday to discuss the ‘New Deal’, which aims to increase financial stability across the country’s football leagues. The new Football Regulator will impose a settlement, if necessary, but the government had hoped that the top tier teams would agree on their own terms.
West Ham and Crystal Palace, along with Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Wolves, Nottingham Forest, and Bournemouth, have all expressed opposition to the transaction. According to the Daily Mail, the idea of clubs donating money to rival clubs is ‘unpalatable’ and ‘unworkable’.
The latest stumbling block has caused frustration among EFL clubs, who are due to gain from an £88 million cash injection if granted. According to The Athletic, the £88 million cash injection would amount to £3.52 million for Championship clubs, £528,000 for League One teams, and £352,000 for League Two clubs.
Charlton co-owner Charlie Methven talked to talkSPORT on Tuesday and made his thoughts on the topic clear, demanding that Crystal Palace and West Ham ‘grow up’.
Methven stated, “There are a few Premier League clubs that are holding the industry back and driving the rest of the industry insane by only thinking about their own short-term, narrow self-interest.” Everything else is simply noise. It is documented that Palace and West Ham are at the forefront of this King Canute-inspired movement. It is not yet clear who clubs they have persuaded to support them.
“If you speak with executives from other Premier League clubs, they are almost as frustrated as we are. They understand because they see a larger strategic picture of what will happen with the public regulator. [Palace and West Ham need to] mature. Remember that these clubs, the ones they govern, were formerly Football League members, and that in a game of musical chairs, they are in the seats they currently occupy. It does not rule out the possibility of their clubs returning to the Football League at some stage.”
Watch: New Champions League format explained.
Methven is one of seven Charlton shareholders who own more than 5% of the club, which was acquired by Global Football Partners’ UK subsidiary SE7 Partners in July 2023. After his radio rant, The Guardian reported that West Ham’s vice-chair, Karren Brady, had received an apology from Charlton’s co-owner for his comments.
LondonWorld has contacted Charlton Athletic for comment.
