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The sex video clip involved a woman and the footballer engaged in sex at his home.
Timms pleaded guilty last month and was jailed today at Manchester crown court after admitting making a series of unwarranted demands with menaces.
The judge Andrew Gilbart said: "Blackmail always calls for a custodial sentence. The abuse of your friendship for simple greed is an aggravating feature. This was a calculated attempt to extract money for your own benefit.
"It is depressing that in a society where there is supposed to be more sexual freedom, some popular newspapers and magazines continue to dress their interest in it as some form of moral indignation when what they are actually doing is making money from their readers' interest in sex and salacious gossip."
Timms and the player, known only as witness A, had become friends over time and were part of a "fantasy world" of fast cars, money and girls.
Such videoing of footballers involved in sex with girls had become "commonplace", the court heard.
David Friesner, prosecuting, told the court Timms used a mobile phone to video the international footballer having sex with a 19-year-old woman at the player's home last September.
But the footballers drifted apart as Timms' football career "withered" because of his poor attitude.
He became excluded from the high-living world of a top footballer but "out of the blue" contacted the Premier League player in March. Timms wanted £15,000 to put a deposit on a house and told A he could "buy" the sex footage and then destroy it.
Over a series of text messages, he told the player: "I have got loads of pictures and the video of you. If you want them, make me an offer."
The player contacted officials at his club and a meeting was called at a hotel in Manchester. During the meeting, Timms said: "What's it worth? I want thousands."
Timms said football was a multimillion-pound operation and the club would not even notice any pay-off.
He also hinted he could "lose" the phone in a taxi - and the footage might end up on YouTube if it was not destroyed.
He continued to pester the player for cash, sending his bank details so the money could be paid directly into his account. Instead, the police were called and Timms was arrested on April 4.
The video footage was never recovered and Timms said he destroyed it. But a laptop computer showed Timms had carried out searches on Google entitled 'How to sell sex videos'.
The ordeal upset the player's form, Friesner said.
In a victim impact statement, A said: "It has really made me feel I can't trust anyone and I feel quite insecure and if I meet anyone now, I constantly feel they're after my money."
Rob Kearney, for Timms, said the defendant came from a decent family of police officers, solicitors and teachers. Although not academically bright, he was good at sport and was seen as a potential Premier League footballer after signing for Manchester City.
"That allowed him to enter into a life most people would dream about, a fantasy world of money, fast cars, jewellery and girls; what is often described as the high life," said Kearney.
His career began to falter, however. He was released by Manchester City and dropped down the leagues, flitting between clubs including Altrincham, Shrewsbury Town, Runcorn and Accrington Stanley.
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