Why smaller clubs no longer make profits from players

[Upton Rover]

It’s a frustrating reality for fans of lower-league clubs. While the "selling club" model was once the lifeblood of the EFL, several structural shifts in the modern game have made it incredibly difficult for smaller teams to turn a sustainable profit on player sales.
​Here is why the "sell-to-survive" model has broken down:
​1. The EPPP and "Elite" Poaching
​The Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP), introduced in 2012, changed everything. It allows top-tier academies to sign young players from lower-league clubs for fixed, relatively low compensation fees.
​The Old Way: A League One club could hold out for a 2 million fee for a 16-year-old wonderkid.
​The New Way: A Premier League giant can often trigger a move for a fraction of that cost based on set "flat rates," meaning smaller clubs lose their best assets before they even reach the first team.
​2. The Death of the "Middleman" Transfer
​Years ago, a player would move from League Two to the Championship, and then to the Premier League. Each step involved a significant fee.
Now, Premier League clubs use vast scouting networks and data analytics to buy directly from abroad (France, Belgium, or South America) rather than shopping in the English lower leagues. This bypasses the EFL "feeder" system entirely.
​3. Wage Inflation vs. Transfer Fees
​Even if a lower-league club manages to develop a star, they often can't afford to keep them long enough to drive up a price.
​The Contract Trap: If a player has a breakout season, they often refuse to sign a new contract because they know a "Bosman" (free transfer) move to a bigger club will net them a massive signing bonus and higher wages.
​Asset Depreciation: Clubs end up selling players at a discount with only six months left on their contract just to get something rather than losing them for 0.
​4. Financial "Doping" and Sustainability
​The gap between the "haves" and "have-nots" is now an abyss.
​Operational Costs: Utility bills, insurance, and travel costs have skyrocketed, while League One and Two TV revenue has stayed relatively flat.
​The Result: Any profit made from a player sale is immediately swallowed up by the club's monthly electricity bill or basic overheads, rather than being reinvested into the squad.
​5. The Loan Market
​Premier League clubs now hoard talent in "loan armies." Instead of a League One club buying a young striker and selling him for a profit later, they simply loan a player from Chelsea or Man City for a year.
​The Problem: The club gets the performance, but they develop the player for someone else. When the player succeeds, the parent club takes him back and sells him for 20 million, and the lower-league club gets nothing but a "thank you."

[Smyth]

How much did Rovers pay to acquire Owen Bailey?

[tyke1962]

It’s a frustrating reality for fans of lower-league clubs. While the "selling club" model was once the lifeblood of the EFL, several structural shifts in the modern game have made it incredibly difficult for smaller teams to turn a sustainable profit on player sales.
​Here is why the "sell-to-survive" model has broken down:
​1. The EPPP and "Elite" Poaching
​The Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP), introduced in 2012, changed everything. It allows top-tier academies to sign young players from lower-league clubs for fixed, relatively low compensation fees.
​The Old Way: A League One club could hold out for a 2 million fee for a 16-year-old wonderkid.
​The New Way: A Premier League giant can often trigger a move for a fraction of that cost based on set "flat rates," meaning smaller clubs lose their best assets before they even reach the first team.
​2. The Death of the "Middleman" Transfer
​Years ago, a player would move from League Two to the Championship, and then to the Premier League. Each step involved a significant fee.
Now, Premier League clubs use vast scouting networks and data analytics to buy directly from abroad (France, Belgium, or South America) rather than shopping in the English lower leagues. This bypasses the EFL "feeder" system entirely.
​3. Wage Inflation vs. Transfer Fees
​Even if a lower-league club manages to develop a star, they often can't afford to keep them long enough to drive up a price.
​The Contract Trap: If a player has a breakout season, they often refuse to sign a new contract because they know a "Bosman" (free transfer) move to a bigger club will net them a massive signing bonus and higher wages.
​Asset Depreciation: Clubs end up selling players at a discount with only six months left on their contract just to get something rather than losing them for 0.
​4. Financial "Doping" and Sustainability
​The gap between the "haves" and "have-nots" is now an abyss.
​Operational Costs: Utility bills, insurance, and travel costs have skyrocketed, while League One and Two TV revenue has stayed relatively flat.
​The Result: Any profit made from a player sale is immediately swallowed up by the club's monthly electricity bill or basic overheads, rather than being reinvested into the squad.
​5. The Loan Market
​Premier League clubs now hoard talent in "loan armies." Instead of a League One club buying a young striker and selling him for a profit later, they simply loan a player from Chelsea or Man City for a year.
​The Problem: The club gets the performance, but they develop the player for someone else. When the player succeeds, the parent club takes him back and sells him for 20 million, and the lower-league club gets nothing but a "thank you."

As a club who found a tremendous amount of players that we sold on for huge profit for a significant period and now don't much of what say is true but it's been this way for many many years and yet we still found them .

They key for us is that we had money to start this model to begin with when we received the sell on money when John Stones left Everton for Manchester City and around £8m .

This offered us a different market rather than the bargain bucket we find ourselves in today .

We were paying fees to Forest Green of around £750k for Ethan Pinnock and Liam Kitching , £500k to Ipswich for Keiffer Moore and a million quid to Fulham for Cauley Woodrow even though we were in League One .

In my opinion you need money today to make money tomorrow and that ship has sailed for us now .

[Filo]

How much did Rovers pay to acquire Owen Bailey?

Free agent

[Pancho Regan]

It’s a frustrating reality for fans of lower-league clubs. While the "selling club" model was once the lifeblood of the EFL, several structural shifts in the modern game have made it incredibly difficult for smaller teams to turn a sustainable profit on player sales.
​Here is why the "sell-to-survive" model has broken down:
​1. The EPPP and "Elite" Poaching
​The Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP), introduced in 2012, changed everything. It allows top-tier academies to sign young players from lower-league clubs for fixed, relatively low compensation fees.
​The Old Way: A League One club could hold out for a 2 million fee for a 16-year-old wonderkid.
​The New Way: A Premier League giant can often trigger a move for a fraction of that cost based on set "flat rates," meaning smaller clubs lose their best assets before they even reach the first team.
​2. The Death of the "Middleman" Transfer
​Years ago, a player would move from League Two to the Championship, and then to the Premier League. Each step involved a significant fee.
Now, Premier League clubs use vast scouting networks and data analytics to buy directly from abroad (France, Belgium, or South America) rather than shopping in the English lower leagues. This bypasses the EFL "feeder" system entirely.
​3. Wage Inflation vs. Transfer Fees
​Even if a lower-league club manages to develop a star, they often can't afford to keep them long enough to drive up a price.
​The Contract Trap: If a player has a breakout season, they often refuse to sign a new contract because they know a "Bosman" (free transfer) move to a bigger club will net them a massive signing bonus and higher wages.
​Asset Depreciation: Clubs end up selling players at a discount with only six months left on their contract just to get something rather than losing them for 0.
​4. Financial "Doping" and Sustainability
​The gap between the "haves" and "have-nots" is now an abyss.
​Operational Costs: Utility bills, insurance, and travel costs have skyrocketed, while League One and Two TV revenue has stayed relatively flat.
​The Result: Any profit made from a player sale is immediately swallowed up by the club's monthly electricity bill or basic overheads, rather than being reinvested into the squad.
​5. The Loan Market
​Premier League clubs now hoard talent in "loan armies." Instead of a League One club buying a young striker and selling him for a profit later, they simply loan a player from Chelsea or Man City for a year.
​The Problem: The club gets the performance, but they develop the player for someone else. When the player succeeds, the parent club takes him back and sells him for 20 million, and the lower-league club gets nothing but a "thank you."

As a club who found a tremendous amount of players that we sold on for huge profit for a significant period and now don't much of what say is true but it's been this way for many many years and yet we still found them .

They key for us is that we had money to start this model to begin with when we received the sell on money when John Stones left Everton for Manchester City and around £8m .

This offered us a different market rather than the bargain bucket we find ourselves in today .

We were paying fees to Forest Green of around £750k for Ethan Pinnock and Liam Kitching , £500k to Ipswich for Keiffer Moore and a million quid to Fulham for Cauley Woodrow even though we were in League One .

In my opinion you need money today to make money tomorrow and that ship has sailed for us now .

Reading those figures relating to substantial, fairly recent incomes for Barnsley makes you wonder how they’ve managed to piss it all away so dramatically.

[Sprotyrover]

Probably went on Championship wages!

[Smyth]

How much did Rovers pay to acquire Owen Bailey?

Free agent

Yes, a result of the Bosman ruling, by the  European Court of Justice, clubs receive nothing for previously registered players over 24.

[tyke1962]

It’s a frustrating reality for fans of lower-league clubs. While the "selling club" model was once the lifeblood of the EFL, several structural shifts in the modern game have made it incredibly difficult for smaller teams to turn a sustainable profit on player sales.
​Here is why the "sell-to-survive" model has broken down:
​1. The EPPP and "Elite" Poaching
​The Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP), introduced in 2012, changed everything. It allows top-tier academies to sign young players from lower-league clubs for fixed, relatively low compensation fees.
​The Old Way: A League One club could hold out for a 2 million fee for a 16-year-old wonderkid.
​The New Way: A Premier League giant can often trigger a move for a fraction of that cost based on set "flat rates," meaning smaller clubs lose their best assets before they even reach the first team.
​2. The Death of the "Middleman" Transfer
​Years ago, a player would move from League Two to the Championship, and then to the Premier League. Each step involved a significant fee.
Now, Premier League clubs use vast scouting networks and data analytics to buy directly from abroad (France, Belgium, or South America) rather than shopping in the English lower leagues. This bypasses the EFL "feeder" system entirely.
​3. Wage Inflation vs. Transfer Fees
​Even if a lower-league club manages to develop a star, they often can't afford to keep them long enough to drive up a price.
​The Contract Trap: If a player has a breakout season, they often refuse to sign a new contract because they know a "Bosman" (free transfer) move to a bigger club will net them a massive signing bonus and higher wages.
​Asset Depreciation: Clubs end up selling players at a discount with only six months left on their contract just to get something rather than losing them for 0.
​4. Financial "Doping" and Sustainability
​The gap between the "haves" and "have-nots" is now an abyss.
​Operational Costs: Utility bills, insurance, and travel costs have skyrocketed, while League One and Two TV revenue has stayed relatively flat.
​The Result: Any profit made from a player sale is immediately swallowed up by the club's monthly electricity bill or basic overheads, rather than being reinvested into the squad.
​5. The Loan Market
​Premier League clubs now hoard talent in "loan armies." Instead of a League One club buying a young striker and selling him for a profit later, they simply loan a player from Chelsea or Man City for a year.
​The Problem: The club gets the performance, but they develop the player for someone else. When the player succeeds, the parent club takes him back and sells him for 20 million, and the lower-league club gets nothing but a "thank you."

As a club who found a tremendous amount of players that we sold on for huge profit for a significant period and now don't much of what say is true but it's been this way for many many years and yet we still found them .

They key for us is that we had money to start this model to begin with when we received the sell on money when John Stones left Everton for Manchester City and around £8m .

This offered us a different market rather than the bargain bucket we find ourselves in today .

We were paying fees to Forest Green of around £750k for Ethan Pinnock and Liam Kitching , £500k to Ipswich for Keiffer Moore and a million quid to Fulham for Cauley Woodrow even though we were in League One .

In my opinion you need money today to make money tomorrow and that ship has sailed for us now .

Reading those figures relating to substantial, fairly recent incomes for Barnsley makes you wonder how they’ve managed to piss it all away so dramatically.

I think using the term pyssing away is a bit of a stretch .

The club were for a number of years self sustainable , when Patrick Cryne sold the club we were completely debt free , in the championship and had £5m in the bank .

Of course mistakes were made but the ever increasing players wages was one factor but the biggest contributor was the 18 months of empty stadiums during covid , our sell to market totally collapsed during that time .

The team that finished 5th in the championship during the covid season didn't result in one player attracting interest , this would normally have been at the very top of their value after such a tremendous campaign .

By the time the market picked up the players had lost form , motivation and we were back in league one although players such as Carlton Morris , Callum Styles , Callum Brittain , Alex Mowatt , Connor Chaplin all moved on for fees way below what we'd have achieved 12 months earlier under normal trading conditions .

It didn't help that Viktor Gyokeres was almost a done deal and would have cost us £500k from Brighton changed his mind at the very last moment and went to Coventry instead who subsequently sold him to Sporting Lisbon for €20m .

But that's football , it goes for you for a time and kicks you in the balls too .

[Upton Rover]

How much did Rovers pay to acquire Owen Bailey?

how much would we get for him,? and you can add up on one hand what's the total income we have accumulated on sold player's in the last decade

[selby]

  The academy has brought in more transfer money in the last few years than the first team, thanks to people like Tony Cook, Kevan Wilds,  Tony Mee, John Buckley and Steve Welsh all very committed, and great with the kids, and very little recognition or interest shown in what they did.

[Janso]

How much did Rovers pay to acquire Owen Bailey?

how much would we get for him,? and you can add up on one hand what's the total income we have accumulated on sold player's in the last decade

So you've got a few million fingers on one hand? didn't realise Upton was so close to Barnsley.

[Rupee92ONLY]

  The academy has brought in more transfer money in the last few years than the first team, thanks to people like Tony Cook, Kevan Wilds,  Tony Mee, John Buckley and Steve Welsh all very committed, and great with the kids, and very little recognition or interest shown in what they did.

I saw him coaching a young lad (who had full rovers kit on) on the town fields yesterday evening. Cones and poles out, the lot. About 15 footballs. Both were enjoying it.

Whether he was a young relation or it’s something he does now I don’t know but they were putting the work in.

John Buckley took me and a group of us for our FA Level 1 years back when he was Belles manager. Also sorted my dad a ticket for 1995 FA Cup final for decorating his house. What a bloke.

[selby]

What a bloke indeed really has sessions with the lads they work very hard at but all with a smile on their face enjoying it, a top lad.
  All the others have moved on to other clubs but did a lot while here to progress players, and spent their own time looking for talent for the club and have gone on to better things.