Luton want TV contingency plans

Luton managing director Gary Sweet wants to see contingency plans brought in to protect clubs in broadcast deals.

Blue Square Premier clubs are still waiting to hear the fate of Setanta, who cover the league's matches.

The Irish broadcaster has stopped taking on new customers as it "attempts to secure the future of the business".

Sweet told BBC Three Counties Radio: "I'm disappointed no contingencies have been made with so much money around in the game."

And he fears the club could lose up to £120,000 in lost television revenue.

"Clearly as a high profile club in the conference this season we were hoping to be shown quite a few times," he said. "Burton were shown six times this season, which probably took them up to about £110,000 to £120,000.

"I do think that further contingency should be made in case of this sort of event"

"I think if you run your business properly, then that £70,000 to £80,000 [from television coverage] has probably already been spent because clearly if you want to buy a player you want to get in ahead of your competition and you need to make other plans.

"Contracts for the season need to be signed up during the summer, so pretty much every football club would have spent that £70,000 so now for us it is about how we create initiatives to recover that money if, of course, Setanta do go bust, or if they don't get bought out by somebody else.

The clubs are waiting to find out what will happen, with the Irish broadcaster's future very much in the balance.

Sweet explained: "We have got the Conference AGM this weekend, which we are attending, which could shed a little bit of light on the current situation.

"At the end of the day £70,000-£120,000 is a lot of money to Luton Town FC. It isn't so critical that it could put us on the brink, of course, it's not like ITV Digital a few years ago.

"But certainly for a number of clubs in the Conference it could be a problem. It could give Luton a little bit of a competitive advantage because we are more stable than most others.

"I do think that further contingency plans should be made in case of this sort of event, especially with the experience of ITV Digital, which literally did put a number of clubs into administration."

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