The Premier League contributed £7.6 billion to the UK economy and supported 94,000 jobs during a single season, despite the impact of coronavirus.
New figures for the 2019-20 campaign reveal just what top flight football means to the country – in hard cash. The 20 elite clubs paid out £3.6 billion to the government in tax, including £1.4 billion from the players alone.
The numbers underline the extraordinary growth in the Premier League, since it was founded in 1992, driven largely by television revenues.
Teddy Sheringham of Nottingham Forest fires past David James of Liverpool to score the only goal in a 1-0 win for Forest in the first Premier League game to be televised on Sky in 1992
Sky Sports launched its Premier League coverage in 1992 with this picture
The cost of screening Premier League football at home and abroad has rocketed since 1992 and the increase in broadcast revenues has driven the rising value of the top flight
Over the last two decades, the league’s economic contribution has risen from £0.