The play-offs take place this month (Picture: James Gill – Danehouse/Getty Images)

The Championship play-offs return this weekend with four teams just three games away from securing the Premier League jackpot.

The first semi-final on Saturday sees Sunderland, who were only promoted to the Championship at the end of last season, take on Luton Town who were beaten by Huddersfield at this stage 12 months ago.

The second semi-final on Sunday will pit Michael Carrick’s Middlesbrough against Coventry City, with the return legs set for Tuesday and Wednesday next week.

The two semi-final winners will progress to the play-off final at Wembley on Saturday, May 27, which is considered the most valuable game in world football such is the prize of the Premier League’s riches.

But exactly how much money will the Championship play-off winners earn for winning the final?

How much is promotion to the Premier League worth?

According to Deloitte, promotion to the Premier League can see an increase in revenue of between £135 million and £265 million depending on if the team can avoid an immediate return to the Championship.

Middlesbrough and Coventry are involved in the play-offs (Picture: Mark Fletcher/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

In recent years, the 20 Premier League clubs have shared broadcast revenue of around £2.5 billion per season.

With the broadcast money split evenly between clubs, each team earns around £31.4 million from equal share payments, £47.5 million from international TV rights and £5.9 million in central commercial payments for a total fee of £84.4 million.

For comparison, Championships clubs only receive around £8 million in TV rights income for a season spent in the second tier.

On top of this, clubs are given merit payments based on where they finish in the Premier League.

The sliding scale sees the champions receive roughly £34.9 million and the bottom-placed team around £1.7 million.

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Facility fees are also paid out for every televised game a team is involved in.

On top of income directly from the Premier League, clubs dining at the top table of English football also experience far greater commercial and sponsorship potential.

According to the Mirror, commercial directors at Premier League clubs charge ten times as much for a 30 second pitch side advert than their Championship counterparts such is the sheer scale of the global TV audience.

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The Premier League’s riches are agonisingly close.