EFL rules hand club major boost after Newcastle United St James' Park decision made

Wimbledon’s upcoming home matches in League Two have also had to be rearranged as there is ‘no possibility’ of the games going ahead at Plough Lane due to the significant flooding and unplayable pitch.

The Carabao Cup third round match against Newcastle has been rearranged to take place on Tuesday, October 1 at St James’ Park instead of Plough Lane - a decision that was ultimately made that would benefit all parties.

A statement issued by Wimbledon thanked Newcastle and the EFL for their swift action in scheduling the match at St James’ Park.

“Supporters are likely to have seen images or footage circulating of the significant pitch damage at our stadium, following record levels of water at the nearby River Wandle overnight,” the statement read.

“It has been an immensely difficult day for club staff given the extent of the flooding, with related damage to our pitch and stadium. No doubt it’s been a difficult day for our supporters and volunteers, seeing the scenes online too.

“Staff encountered significant flooding of the ground level of the stadium, affecting our offices, the shop and museum, reception areas, lifts, and tunnel area, as well as all concourse areas at ground level.”

A fundraiser and additional events have been set up to help Wimbledon fix the damage to the stadium. Wimbledon will also receive a financial boost due to EFL rules following the fixture rearrangement.

In the Carabao Cup, each club receives 45% of the proceeds from the fixture they take part in with the remaining 10% going to the ‘Cup Competition Pool’ which is then divided and shared between all Premier League and EFL clubs.

Newcastle have also donated £15,000 to the Just Giving page to ensure the fundraiser reached its £50,000 target in just over 24 hours.

The money generated through ticket sales is expected to be significantly increased for the fixture due to the change in venue from the 9,215-capacity Plough Lane to Newcastle’s 52,258-capacity St James’ Park. More tickets are set to be sold, providing a welcome financial boost to Wimbledon.

But the hard work is still yet to come for the League Two club as they look to get their home pitch playable sooner rather than later.