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Millions at Stake in Final Premier League Games

Evan Rothman

On Sunday, the 20-team Barclays English Premier League, the most successful soccer league in the world, will conclude its regular season.

Unlike major U.S. sports, winning the regular-season title is the league's highest achievement. Manchester United, known to its fans as the Red Devils or Man U, has already secured enough points to win the championship. But it's still a high-stakes day for the rest of the league, which will make for a thrilling and potentially terrifying day for fans.

Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo trains with teammates at the Carrington training grounds.

Like every major European soccer league, the English Premier League follows a system known as "relegation." The season's three worst-performing teams drop down a division. They're replaced by the three best teams from the second-tier league, which is ironically dubbed the "Championship."

Imagine if a team like the St. Louis Cardinals was one loss away from Triple-A ball or if Microsoft(MSFT Quote) was dropped from the Dow Jones Industrial Average after a bad quarter.

That's the fear felt by passionate Newcastle United fans, nicknamed the "Toon Army." The club stands in the final relegation spot after a nightmarish run of injuries, player and managerial drama, and conflicts between fans and mercurial owner Mike Ashley. (Think Mark Cuban without the success.) If league results don't go Newcastle's way this weekend, the team will play next season in smaller stadiums in front of fewer fans.

The financial consequences for relegated teams can be nothing short of catastrophic. Having a spot in the Premier League versus the Championship League can bring in $60 million a season by some estimates.

Manchester United, the most valuable team in the sport, according to Forbes, which last month estimated the club's value to be $1.87 billion with $512 million of revenue, clinched its third-straight title last week. Its star player, Cristiano Ronaldo, reportedly earns 120,000 pounds a week. Starting next year, a sponsorship deal with Indian telecom company Bharti Airtel will help pay the team's wage bill.

Leeds United lost its best players when it fell victim to relegation, which often happens in these situations. The club nearly went bankrupt and now toils in League One, the third tier of English soccer. Other relegated clubs have been liquidated.

On Sunday, three other teams will be fighting for their Premiership lives: Hull City, Sunderland and Middlesbrough, which needs a highly improbable chain of events to occur to hold its spot, including a four-goal victory.

Sunderland and Hull control their own destiny. If they win, they stay in the league. That task is complicated by the fact that they're playing top teams Chelsea and Manchester United, respectively. Third-ranked Chelsea, owned by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, has a team full of world-class talent.

Manchester United is getting ready to defend its Champions League title against Barcelona on May 27. Manager Alex Ferguson plans to let his stars rest before the game.

For Sunderland and Hull, everything is at stake. Their opposition is playing for professional pride, with some newcomers getting a chance to shine. Newcastle will have to overcome its nerves and defeat a talented Aston Villa team to reverse its fortunes.