The Sheffield United squad will receive a £10m bonus if they avoid relegation this season, according to the Daily Mail.
Ahead of this weekend’s Premier League match with Manchester United they are well on course to achieve that. The Blades are currently fifth in the table with 17 points after 12 games.
It is not unusual for newly promoted sides to have such a bonus in place. The Daily Mail reported last season that Cardiff City’s players would also have split a £10m if they stayed up. Unfortunately for them the Bluebirds were relegated.
However, Wolverhampton Wanderers had a slightly different system. Their bonus depended on what position they finished in the table. 17th would equal £3m, with top half landing them £10m.
Wolves eventually ended up in seventh and qualified for the Europa League. That achievement earned them a whopping £12m bonus.
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How will the Sheffield United bonus work?
(Photo by James Williamson – AMA/Getty Images)
The report doesn’t go into details, but it appears to suggest United’s setup is similar to Cardiff’s. If they finish 17th or higher and avoid the drop, the players get £10m.
Generally this is split depending on game time. Those who have played more often during the campaign receive a bigger payment.
This is a far cry from the bonuses the Blades were given by Chris Wilder when he first took charge as manager in 2016. In August of that year the South Yorkshire side lost at Millwall to leave them bottom of League One.
As the team coach left South London, Wilder gave Billy Sharp £100 to go and buy beers for the players. At that point not many would have predicted that three years later they would be back in the top flight.
They host the Red Devils at Bramall Lane on Sunday, where they have already beaten Arsenal this term. That defeat at The Den seems a long time ago now.
