Hull City are facing administration if they're relegated, it has been revealed.

The Daily Mail says their failure to insert relegation clauses into the contracts of at least five of their highest earners will almost certainly see them follow Portsmouth into administration if they drop out of the Barclays Premier League this season.

Jimmy Bullard, who earns £45,000 per week basic, is one of the five players whose wages cannot be cut if the club are relegated. The contracts in question were negotiated by former chairman and chief executive Paul Duffen.

The midfielder has three and a half years remaining on his contract and, with several add-ons taking his basic wage higher, should the debt-ridden club go down, his salary alone could tip the club into administration.

Hull's total annual wage bill stands at £40m. Stephen Hunt, signed from Reading for £3.5m last August, and Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink, who joined from Celtic on a free transfer, are others believed to have joined without a relegation clause in their contracts. Geovanni and George Boateng are also understood to command lucrative salaries.