Championship: Preston North End's £21.6m wage bill compared to Coventry, Millwall and Blackburn Rovers

Preston North End face another season in the Championship after a disappointing end to the 2023/24 season.

The Lilywhites suffered five consecutive defeats and that saw them miss out on the play-offs by 10 points and finish tenth. It's the highest league finish since Ryan Lowe's appointment however, and hopefully there is something to build on for next season.

Perhaps North End's inability to do any business in the January transfer window caught up with them in the end. Several key players were out with injury from mid-March and so Preston had to continue on with what they've got.

North End are one of only a select few clubs still yet to grace the Premier League since its inception in 1992. If you look past the name change and re-branding, Preston are an historic club, but fans in the modern era are still waiting for their opportunity to watch their team play the big guns of today.

A huge factor of that is resources and what a club can afford. If you've been relegated from the Prem you're afforded parachute payments, and then there are other teams with big stadiums and wealthy backers. Hull City went for it this season but after missing out on the play-offs, they parted ways with Liam Rosenior.

Here, we look at how Preston North End’s wage bill compares to their rivals in the Championship. These exact figures were collated by Chris Weatherspoon from the Wise Men Say Podcast and Fair Game. You can read more of his findings, relating to both matters on and off of the pitch here.

*These figures are from the 2022/23 season, and so Sheffield United, Burnley and Luton Town feature whilst Rotherham United, Reading and Blackpool are also included. This is because, all clubs from last season had to publish their accounts, and so this season’s accounts won’t be revealed until this time next year.