Oxford United’s coffers will be boosted by at least £750,000 if they can secure promotion back into the Football league.

Club chairman Kelvin Thomas said he expected to gain an extra £500,000 next season if his team beats York City in the play-off final on Sunday, May 16.

The majority of that six-figure sum would come from increased TV revenue and a guaranteed £180,000 youth development fund Mr Thomas added the club could expect to land an additional £250,000 on top of the £500,000 through gate receipts, regardless of the Wembley result.

He said: “I expect that getting to Wembley will earn the club about £250,000.

“Each club gets 25 per cent of the net total from the day itself.

“Winning at Wembley would, I think roughly, be worth a net £500,000.”

Professional clubs which drop out of the league lose half their youth development funding immediately and lose all the cash after two years.

A return to the league proved a huge financial boost for Torquay United last year.

Dave Thomas, chief sports writer for the South Devon Herald Express newspaper, estimated promotion boosted Torquay United's coffers by about £600,000.

And he said promotion had a huge knock-on effect for hoteliers and other businesses in the seaside resort who benefited from hundreds more away fans attending matches.

He said: “Financially it's a big boost and there’s a huge increase in the number of supporters attending matches in the Football League compared to the Conference.”

Torquay saw their average attendance increase from 2,242 in 2008-9 to 2,752 in the Football League.

As a club with a stadium twice the size of Torquay’s and a larger fan base, Oxford would expect to get bumper gates from home derbies against Cheltenham Town and Wycombe Wanderers next season, as well as visits from some of League Two’s larger clubs, like Bradford City.

Smaller Conference sides like Grays Athletic and Gateshead bring just a few dozen supporters to the Kassam.

Fans are now keeping their fingers crossed for a return to the Football League and the resulting cash windfall.

Simon Bradbury, a committee member of supporters' group Oxvox, said: “There are so many different revenue streams like increased merchandising that will be opened by getting promotion.

“It will definitely increase home attendances. As Sunday’s game shows, there are a lot of fans who don’t come regularly but there's still a lot of support for the club in the community.”

Chairman of the Oxford Association of Hotels and Guest Houses, Stefan Wynne-Jones, said: “We hope Oxford United can get promotion and we would welcome more visitors to the city with open arms.”

Mr Wynne-Jones, who runs Tilbury Lodge, in Botley, added: “A lot of fans might be day visitors but hopefully fans travelling from further afield will see it’s worth staying a night in Oxford.”

We want to hear your Wembley stories.

  • Do you have a friend or relative travelling from afar to see United in the play-off final, or perhaps you know of someone who will tune in from another country?
  • Were you there to witness the Yellows’ triumph in the Milk Cup final at Wembley in 1986?
  • Are you decorating your car or home to celebrate the big day out?
  • Do you have an unusual pre-match superstition which you believe will help Oxford beat York next week?
  • Or do you have any other news which you think might interest fellow fans in the run-up to the big match?

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