How '£100m boost' for Ipswich Town could help club and county

After a season away from the Premier League, Ipswich Town are once again set to return to the promised land after securing promotion from the Championship.

The Tractor Boys booked their place back in football's top flight on the final day of the season following a convincing 3-0 win over QPR in front of their home fans at Portman Road.

Finishing in second place, Kieran McKenna's side obtained 84 points from 46 games – form they will want to ensure they carry into next season.

Promotion to the Premier League is what every team dreams of achieving, but what does it actually mean for the club, and how will it impact the county?

For starters, it means millions of pounds - £100m in fact, according to Kieran Maguire, a specialist in football finance at the University of Liverpool.

"Ipswich Town will probably earn about £45m-50m from the TV deal, and they will have the ability to charge higher amounts for corporate and the hospitality deals," he said.

"And there's no doubt the front of shirt sponsorship deal and commercial partners will greatly enhance, so they should double their revenues from £20m to about £40m.

"I reckon about a £100m boost overall. So there's a lot more money coming in, but it also has to be said, there tends to be a lot more money going out as well."

Some of the income the club will receive will come from parachute payments – money linked to the value of broadcasting rights paid to teams when they are relegated.

The additional windfall is distributed in three instalments over three years, meaning Town will continue to benefit from the money for the next two seasons.

Starting from the 2026/27 season, the Premier League will also be introducing its new Squad Cost Ratio (SCR) financial framework to prevent overspending.

This will limit clubs' expenditure to 85% of their revenue on wages, transfers, and agent fees.

"Those rules are actually more beneficial to a club such as Ipswich Town," Maguire said.

"Promotion can also be beneficial second time around because the club, from top to bottom, now knows the expectations of being a Premier League football club.

"That transition from Championship is huge, and we, therefore, see many clubs go up only to become immediately relegated."

As much as Ipswich Town will see more money coming into the club, Maguire says they will also need to spend it in order to stand a chance of staying up.

After the club's promotion to the Premier League in 2024, following 22 years away, the team was relegated, ending the season with a whimper, having secured just 22 points.

"It's going to be expensive, and you can't do it on the cheap, so this is going to need funding from somewhere," said Maguire.

"Are the owners going to be willing to put more money in? They put £45m in 24/25 and £39m into the club the previous season – so it's an expensive exercise.

"We've seen clubs such as Bournemouth who have established themselves in the Premier League – and it's certainly within Town's remit to be able to step up."

While Maguire believes that Town could expel the demons of their last time in the top flight and survive relegation, he said recruitment would be key.

"Having a good balance of players with different levels of experience is absolutely essential," he added.

"What you are trying to do is get two plus two to equal five in the sense that the players you sign have to fit into what McKenna wants to do.

"This time Ipswich have players with Premier League experience, but now they need to go into the transfer market and enhance that with players of a similar standard."

Damon Jeffery is the owner of Ipswich's Thomas Wolsey pub, which, on Saturday, when the team was promoted, sold 110 kegs – each containing 88 pints - of beer.

He said that the Tractor Boys' return to the Premier League has its pros and its cons.

"When a team goes into the Premier League, you lose four home games a year, so in a way pubs will lose quite a bit of money," he said,

"However, in my view, it's worth it, because the benefit for the whole town and Suffolk outweighs any sort of short-term loss.

"You get the away fans, so that's a huge benefit to the hotels, the restaurants, and the shops, and everybody is more aware of Ipswich in a positive way."

Mark Cordell, CEO of Our Bury St Edmunds BID, hoped so, but said it did not necessarily work out that way the last time the club went up.

"To be absolutely candid? No, we didn't [benefit] from it," he said.

"We ran a campaign where we targeted supporters of clubs in London and the Northwest, but we didn't see any tangible benefit of that.

"Nonetheless, the overall positive effects of having the team in the Premier League, particularly with the international coverage you get, is a good thing for the county.

"Ideally, if the team was to become a regular member of the Premier League, then that's going to produce huge benefits."

According to a 2024 study by the University of Stirling, universities with successful local football teams are more attractive to prospective students.

The University of Suffolk, which has a partnership with Ipswich Town, said the team's promotion, coupled with other achievements, may attract more interest in its courses.

"There are lots of exciting things for us to celebrate, including the success of the football team, City of Culture 2029 longlist and being named University of the Year at the What Uni Awards 2025," a spokesperson said.

"All these accolades create a buzz around the university and raise the profile of the town, which in turn has a positive influence on prospective students who are choosing where and what to study."

Alan Pease, principal and CEO of Suffolk New College, also said that the Blues being in the Premier League puts "Ipswich in the global spotlight".

"Our college numbers have been steadily growing over recent years, so we hope [Ipswich being in the Premier League] creates more interest in our courses," he said.

"I think the club being in the Premier League brings more prosperity to the town and county, positively affecting areas involved in catering, hospitality and tourism, many of the areas that our students end up working in - so it's a big thumbs up from us."

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