Portsmouth FC v Southampton FC: Owners wealth, wage bill, highest paid player compared
The promotions of both Portsmouth and Southampton this summer meant that we missed out on getting to see another installment of the South Coast Derby.
The last time Pompey and the Saints met in person was more than five years ago. That result—a 4-0 loss to their fierce rivals—is what the hosts at Fratton Park will be hoping for.
After Portsmouth had been promoted to the Championship, the odds of seeing this match played out for the first time in the 2020s were looking quite promising. The fact that the Saints were in the playoffs gave Pompey fans even more grounds to be against their rival’s success. Sadly for the Fratton supporters, they did.
The bragging rights throughout that period have gone to Southampton, despite the fact that it has been a number of years since their last meeting. Since that previous encounter, they have primarily played in the Premier League, whereas Pompey has been in the third division.
More money is earned with a higher ranking in the English football pyramid, which leads to more money being spent.
To determine which team is better, Football League World has examined Southampton’s and Portsmouth’s highest paid players, wage bills, and owners’ wealth.
Owners’ wealth
£2.7b v £1.4b
Some people might be surprised to learn which South Coast Derby owner is the wealthiest given Southampton’s history of collecting Premier League money.
In August 2017, American businessman Michael Eisner acquired ownership of Portsmouth. The Los Angeles Business Journal reports that the former CEO of Disney has an estimated net worth of $3.5 billion (£2.7 billion).
The owner of Southampton is also a billionaire. In January 2022, Dragan Solak assumed leadership of the team. The Guardian estimates that the Serbian media tycoon is worth £1.4 billion, which is over half of Eisner’s wealth. Pompey wins 1-0.
Wage bills
£56m-per-year v £7m-per-year
From here, it’s pretty obvious, given the leagues that the clubs are in, who is going to be the more dominant financial force.
Compared to their counterparts on the south coast, Southampton has a far larger payroll. They are reportedly paying their players over £1 million a week, which is significantly more than Pompey’s reported weekly wage of £138,500.
With that latter amount, Portsmouth’s estimated annual wage expenditure comes to £7.2 million. The Saints submit that to their playing staff in less than two months.
Their annual wage bill is far higher, at just over £56 million.
| Comparing Portsmouth and Southampton’s estimated wage bills | ||
|---|---|---|
| Weekly wage bill | Yearly wage bill | |
| Portsmouth | 138,500 | 7.2 million |
| Southampton | 1.08 million | 56.03 million |
| All figures in £ & taken from Capology | ||
Highest paid players
£120k-per-week v £15k-per-week
The last category’s concept continues into this one as well. The two clubs do share some parallels in this area, too, as both of their top players signed this summer from Premier League rivals.
With a projected weekly salary of £120,000, it should come as no surprise that Aaron Ramsdale, the Saints’ England international custodian, is their highest paid player.
The anticipated weekly salary of Matt Ritchie, a former midfielder for Newcastle United, at Portsmouth is £15,000, which is eight times less than that amount.
In this battle for the South Coast Derby, the Saints now lead 2-1.
Read more news on https://sportupdates.co.uk/
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