The Richest Game in Football

The success of The Basketball Tournament over its first two years is a testament to the entertainment value of teams fighting for a significant winner take all monetary prize. In the Tournament's case, that's up to $2m for the team that survives the 64-team bracket.

Huddersfield: Vertical Stripes

Tomorrow at 10:00 am EST, Huddersfield Town and Reading play a soccer match that's worth roughly 110 times as much as the Tournament's grand prize. The winner of the 2016-17 English Football League Championship playoff will become the third team to be promoted to the English Premier League for the 2017-18 season, and guarantee £170m in rights fees for the promoted club.

The smart money at the beginning of the four-team promotion playoff didn't see either of these sides headed to Wembley. Though Reading were third in the final Championship table, they only had a +4 goal differential, and were facing a Fulham team that had run up a +28 advantage. So the Royals went out and held their opponents to a single goal over two legs, winning 2-1 on a 49th-minute second-leg penalty conversion by Yann Kermorgant.

Reading: Horizontal Stripes. Trippy.

Huddersfield Town might've had even longer odds. The Terriers finished fifth in the regular season, but ended the campaign yielding two more goals than they scored. But they squeaked by favored Sheffield Wednesday, playing to a 1-1 aggregate tie before advancing to the final on penalties.

Despite being one of the oldest clubs in English football, Reading have only played two seasons the top flight, most recently being relegated from the Premiership after the 2012-13 season. Huddersfield have a similarly mediocre history, having never played in the Premier League, and last reaching the top flight in 1972.

Neutral American fans have at least some reason to support each side. Reading midfielder Danny Williams has earned 22 caps with the U.S. Men's National Team since making his international debut in 2011. Meanwhile, Huddersfield manager David Wagner made 8 appearances for the U.S. in the late 90s. One could argue that the German-born-and-raised Wagner would be the second-ever American Premier League manager should his team win tomorrow. Thin gruel, that, perhaps, but we're Making America Great Again these days, so we'll count it. Wagner, a Jurgen Klopp disciple, has his squad playing a Kloppian high-pressure style.

As the English are wont to say, there's little between the two sides. They split their season series, each home side winning, 1-0. Neither entered the playoffs in terrific form, but that doesn't matter much in a one-game tilt.

We're pulling for Huddersfield, on the strength of their mascot. Go Terriers! Win those pounds!