Lower league football clubs are missing out on a whopping £365million a season because the government is giving the Premier League a "free pass", Labour warns today.
Red wall teams are being particularly badly hammered by a lengthy delay in a fairer funding agreement, with clubs in the north and Midlands missing out on an estimated £200million a year.
Last November a fan-led review called for prize money to be more evenly distributed outside the top division - but 12 months later nothing has changed.
This has sparking accusations the Tories have lost interest.
Labour's shadow culture secretary Lucy Powell said: “Minister after minister keeps saying they need to come to an agreement, but what’s clear is without legislation and an independent football regulator, the issue of fair funding of the football pyramid is never going to be resolved."
She said that action is needed before more lower league sides go out of business, and pledged to bring in "proper football regulation in government".
If a new funding system backed by the English Football League (EFL) been agreed, Derby County - which nearly went out of business late last year - would have picked up an extra £4.7million.
Meanwhile Accrington Stanley would have an extra £3million and Hartlepool United would be £3.3million better off.
Just four Championship teams would miss out, as the proposals include a call to scrap parachute payments awarded to clubs relegated from the top division.
The review called on the Premier League to reach an agreement on re-distributing cash by last Christmas, otherwise an independent regulator should impose a new system.
But this is yet to come to fruition, and Labour says this has spelled disaster for dozens of clubs outside the top flight.
The government promised a white paper on football governance in the summer, but this is still yet to materialise.
Labour now says reform of the game is becoming a massive political issue.
Earlier this year former England star Gary Neville called on the government not to water down the recommendations of the fan-led review, telling the Labour Party Conference: "Let's not be scared of regulation... football needs lanes and boundaries."
A Department for Culture, Media and Spot (DCMS) spokesperson said: "The Fan Led Review recommended that football should seek to resolve distributional issues and the Government agrees that the ideal outcome is for football to solve this problem itself.
"We absolutely recognise the need for reform to ensure the game’s sustainability in the long term and we remain committed to publishing our white paper shortly."
How much your football club missed out on
Championship last season
- Fulham - £15.1million worse off
- Bournemouth - £7.5million worse off
- Huddersfield Town - £11.4million
- Nottingham Forest - £23.2million
- Sheffield United - £18million worse off
- Luton Town - £21.8million
- Middlesbrough - £21.8million
- Blackburn Rovers - £20.4million
- Millwall - £19.7million
- West Bromwich Albion - £21.6million worse off
- QPR - £18.2million
- Coventry City - £17.5million
- Preston North End - £16.8million
- Stoke City - £16.1million
- Swansea City - £15.3million
- Blackpool - £14.6million
- Bristol City - £13.9million
- Cardiff City - £13.2million
- Hull City - £12.5million
- Birmingham City - £11.8million
- Reading - £11million
- Peterborough United - £10.3million
- Derby County - £9.6million
- Barnsley - £8.9million
League One last season
- Wigan Athletic - £3.4million
- Rotherham United - £3.2million
- Milton Keynes Dons - £3.1million
- Sheffield Wednesday - £3.0million
- Sunderland - £2.9million
- Wycombe Wanderers - £2.8million
- Plymouth Argyle - £2.7million
- Oxford United - £2.6million
- Bolton Wanderers - £2.5million
- Portsmouth - £2.4million
- Ipswich Town - £2.3million
- Accrington Stanley - £2.2million
- Charlton Athletic - £2.1million
- Cambridge United - £1.9million
- Cheltenham Town - £1.8million
- Burton Albion - £1.7million
- Lincoln City - £1.6million
- Shrewsbury Town - £1.5million
- Morecambe - £1.4million
- Fleetwood Town - £1.3million
- Gillingham - £1.2million
- Doncaster Rovers - £1.1million
- AFC Wimbledon - £1.0million
- Crewe Alexander - £0.9million
League Two last season
- Forest Green Rovers - £2.2million
- Exeter City - £2.1million
- Bristol Rovers - £2.1million
- Northampton Town - £2.0million
- Port Vale - £1.9million
- Swindon Town - £1.8million
- Mansfield Town - £1.8million
- Sutton United - £1.7million
- Tranmere Rovers - £1.6million
- Salford City - £1.6million
- Newport County - £1.5million
- Crawley Town - £1.4million
- Leyton Orient - £1.3million
- Bradford City - £1.3million
- Colchester United - £1.2million
- Walsall - £1.1million
- Hartlepool United - £1million
- Rochdale - £1million
- Harrogate Town - £0.9million
- Carlisle United - £0.8million
- Stevenage - £0.8million
- Barrow - £0.7million
- Oldham Athletic - £0.6million
- Scunthorpe United - £0.5million
