Middlesbrough, Brighton ready for £170M promotion battle

The fixture calendar can produce some real gems, and there is perhaps no greater example across this season of professional football in England than Saturday's clash between Middlesbrough and Brighton & Hove Albion.

The clubs are vying for promotion from the Championship with one match remaining, and home side Boro has a slight advantage through its superior goal difference, meaning a draw would be enough to vault it into the Premier League.

Sean Dyche's Burnley has already confirmed an instant return to the top flight. Deloitte values the final automatic promotion berth as worth £170 million to the victor, and over £290 million if the club manages to stay in the Premier League for a second term.

Much of that lucrative sum comes from the £5.136-billion three-year television rights deal which begins next season.

With its slender advantage in the division and the fact it's hosting at Riverside, Middlesbrough is the preferred team by the bookmakers. Under the occasionally shaky tutelage of Aitor Karanka, the Smoggies have been encouraged to play attractive football. They boast significant firepower in Jordan Rhodes but also the tightest defence in the league, marshalled superbly by Daniel Ayala.

Brighton has outscored Boro, however, with the intimidating presence of Israeli Tomer Hemed often complemented by the experience of Bobby Zamora, who returned to his former club from Queens Park Rangers last summer. Lewis Dunk, 24, is a defender capable of breaking into the England squad if he continues to display his maturity in possession and fantastic reading of the game.

Whichever side loses out on automatic promotion will face Sheffield Wednesday in a two-legged playoff semi-final. Hull City and Derby County will compete for the other spot in the final, due to be played at Wembley on May 28.