Fulham ended their 4-year stay in the Championship via the dramatic play-offs having narrowly missed out on automatic promotion in 3^rd place.

Fulham didn’t let the disappointment of finishing outside the top two that affect them, comfortably winning the play-offs and securing their return to the Premier League.

The increased investment needed to get to the Premier League came at a cost, more than doubling their losses from £21.3m to £45.2m (112%), which may bring Financial Fair Play into play (more below).

Let’s delve into the numbers.

Revenue Analysis

Fulham’s revenue grew slightly, increasing from £34.9m to £38.3m (10%) on the back of promotion.

Matchday revenue increased from £6.6m to £7.0m (6%) as their average attendance increased from 18,498 to 19,896 (8%) with fans flocking to Craven Cottage to see their team promoted. Matchday revenue also benefitted from the additional matches the play-offs yielded.

Broadcasting £21.0m to £21.7m (3%) as Fulham finished 3 places higher than last season and also gained considerably from the play-off final. These gains were offset by a fall in parachute payments, making a return to the Premier League timely.

Commercial revenue increased from £6.0m to £8.5m (42%) as Fulham began exploiting their new Premier League status and will look to build on this and take advantage of the London premium they receive commercially from sponsors.

Other revenue fell from £1.3m to £1.1m (15%).

Looking ahead, Fulham can expect a huge increase in revenue as it shoots to well in excess of £100m from promotion.

Fulham should expect revenue of at least £130m as broadcasting revenue will be around £110m, while matchday revenue and commercial revenue combined is likely to be in excess of £20m, depending on fan attendance and the success of the club’s commercial strategy.

Costs Analysis

Fulham saw costs increase by a third, rising from £73.1m to £97.4m (33%) on the back of increased investment in the club to reach their promotion goal.

Amortisation shot up from £13.7m to £19.0m (39%) due to an increase in player spending (although the majority was recouped). This figure will probably double given the sizeable spend last summer.

Fulham have no interest expense due to the funds provided being interest-free or through share issues (see debt analysis).

Fulham also have no tax charge due to their loss-making status. These losses will be useful in reducing any tax bill this season as the majority of any taxable profit next year can be offset with losses from the last two seasons (or longer if they had not previously been used).

Wages were the biggest mover, rising from £37.1m to £54.3m (46%) as new signings were paid handsomely while existing players earned lucrative new deals.

Promotion related bonuses would also have been paid. These costs and any other that were only payable due to promotion won’t be considered when the EFL commence any Financial Fair Play investigations into the large losses Fulham have made in the last 3 years.

The wage increase works out at an extra £331k a week, a huge increase for a Championship team, showcasing the huge financial risks teams are willing to take to try and achieve promotion.

Directors were also rewarded for promotion as their renumeration increased from £1.0m to £1.2m (20%).

Looking ahead, Fulham will only see costs rise further, probably doubling to around £100m. After a record-breaking summer in the transfer window for a promoted club, amortisation and wages will rocket.

With relegation looming, relegation wage drop clauses are likely to come into effect and may dampen any of these increases slightly. Relegation will be extremely costly to Fulham who will need a quick return to avoid extreme costs controls being required.

Transfers Analysis

Fulham were relatively busy in the transfer window as 5 players entered Craven Cottage and 7 departed.

In came Fonte (£6.2m), Kamara (£5.4m), Christie (£3.1m), Cisse (£2.3m) and Djalo (£0.7m) for a combined £17.6m.

Leaving Fulham were Aluko (£6.8m), Malone (£3.5m), Sanchez (£3.2m), Vigen (£1.4m), Stearman (£0.8m), Madl (£0.7m) and Burgess (£0.1m).

This meant Fulham’s net transfer spend actually fell from £1.6m to £1.2m (25%) as they recouped the majority of their spending in 2018.

The signings were important to their promotion campaign, although it was really the existing talents that took them a step further than they achieved in 2017 by leading them to play-off glory.

In cash terms, Fulham spent cash of £21.7m and recouped cash of £18.1m, a net £3.6m outlay which needed funding (see debt analysis).

Fulham are also owed a further £12.4m, although they owe £18.8m (all of which is due this year). This means Fulham owe £6.4m net this year to other clubs, something that didn’t seem to affect their spending last summer.

There are also potential contingent fees owed to clubs/players if certain clauses are met of £4.7m.

Debt Analysis

Fulham had a heavy loss to deal with this year that depleted their cash reserves, however Shahid Khan was there to fund it all.

Cash levels actually increased, rising from £3.9m to £8.7m (123%) despite the huge loss. New funds of £40m were pumped into the club to pay for these losses and also funded their transfer spend and a £5.7m spend on enhancing their infrastructure as Fulham planned to redevelop the Riverside Stand.

It is such a shame that relegation now seems inevitable given the spending by the club with not only a present mind set but also with a long-term outlook shown by the investments made.

Debt level surprisingly fell from £65.7m to £0.7m (99%) however this was just due to accounting hocus pocus and change in debt to equity. The existing loans of £65.7m were converted into shares and the new £40m funds were given through an issue of shares.

This means the club now do not owe Khan anymore money, with the only way he will recoup these funds is through an increase in value of the club, something relegation will unfortunately not help with. This may help when any Financial Fair Play issues are investigated as the club don’t actually owe much money.

Shahid Khan has shown huge ambition with the level of funds provided, however it seems the strategy was incorrect. The summer signings were not what was hoped for and the decision to sack Jokanovic showed a vision gone awry.

Hence a net debt position of £61.8m turned into a net cash position of £8.0m.

Further funding is likely to be required due to relegation after a £100m+ transfer window. The ongoing financial health of the club will take a huge hit in the Championship with a quick return vital. Fulham have put themselves in a position of financial vulnerability given their huge investment which was meant to secure their Premier League status for next season at the minimum. A financial rethink is needed, and a solid strategy implemented to avoid financial ruin.

Fulham must also deal with any Financial Fair Play issues that come their way, after making a loss in excess of £60m over 3 years, way above the limits allowed. Costs related to promotion will be excluded, while the conversion of their debt to equity may help them significantly when discussing the issue with the EFL (as they owe a minimal amount to anyone).

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Southampton endured a difficult season in 2018, narrowly avoiding relegation with a 17^thplaced finish after years of selling their best players nearly ended in disaster.

Pellegrino struggled to spend well during the season, with the previously excellent scouting team struggling to find any gems leading to departing players not adequately being replaced. A run to the FA Cup Semi-Final was a nice highlight for Southampton, with a trip to Wembley and survival meaning the season was actually not that bad.

A poorer season than usual on the pitch saw profits fall from £34.1m to £28.6m (16%), with a profit being recorded only due to the sale of Virgil Van Dijk. Southampton would have had a loss of more than £30m without his sale.

Let’s delve into the numbers.

Revenue Analysis

Southampton’s revenue suffered after a poor season, falling from £183.7m to £152.6m (17%) due primarily to a drop in league performance and the lack of Europa League football.

Matchday revenue fell from £22.4m to £19.2m (14%) as the number of home games fell and attendances at games suffered due to poor performances on the pitch and disgruntled fans. It was also unfortunate that their run to the FA Cup semi-final only yielded one home game (although much of the revenue is shared in FA Cup games).

Broadcasting revenue fell significantly, falling from £143.0m to £117.0m (18%) due to their drop in league position, lack of Europa League football and a much poorer League Cup campaign. 

Southampton’s run to the FA Cup semi-final failed to offset these drops significantly. It is expected this level of broadcasting is more likely to be their level going forward, with another Europa League campaign in the near future unlikely as things stand.

Commercial revenue fell slightly from £15.5m to £14.9m (4%) which is not too bad considering a poor season, more or less maintaining all commercial deals. Southampton will be hoping to improve this and must be careful current sponsors are not scared away by the ongoing threat of relegation.

Other revenue pretty much halved from £2.8m to £1.5m (46%).

Looking ahead, Southampton are likely to see a similar level of revenue next year, regardless of whether they stay in the Premier League or not. Matchday revenue is likely to remain stable at around £20m, while broadcasting may increase or decrease slightly based on their final league position. Therefore, any growth in revenue will largely be dependant on their final Premier League position and a strong commercial campaign.

Costs Analysis

Southampton’s costs remained relatively stable, increasing from £180.6m to £186.2m (3%) as they prudently managed costs with the threat of relegation looming.

Amortisation grew by a third, rising from £27.4m to £36.7m (34%) as Southampton invested in the playing squad with around £55m of spending to replace outgoing players who were attracting lower levels of amortisation.

Interest charges however fell significantly, dropping from £3.9m to £2.3m (41%) after Southampton changed their debt profile (see debt analysis), reducing interest payments this year.

Southampton pretty much paid their full due of tax, paying tax of £6.3m, an effective tax rate of 18% which is broadly in line with the current UK corporate tax rate.

Wages remained relatively stable, increasing slightly from £112.5m to £113.3m (1%) as Southampton replaced outgoing players with those on similar (or lower) wages.

Southampton should be commended for not going for broke to retain their Premier League status and still maintaining strong wage controls, meaning even if relegation does eventually come, Southampton should have the resources and financial prudence to bounce back without their financial health unravelling.

Directors of Southampton saw their pay drop by a third, falling from £1,562k to £1,047k (33%) after a disappointing season.

Looking ahead, Southampton are likely to see a rise in costs with wages and amortisation likely to rise following the reinvestment of the Van Dijk cash. This will damage profitability further with revenue likely to remain relatively stable. 

Transfers Analysis

Southampton had a high-profile transfer period after a 6 month transfer saga ended in Virgil Van Dijk heading to Anfield for a world-record transfer fee for a defender. The saga not only saw Southampton suffer due to the loss of a star player, but the uncertainty affected their league form and meant they couldn’t reinvest the cash as quickly as they would have probably liked in hindsight.

In came Carrillo (£19.8m), Lemina (£15.5m), Hoedt (£14.4m) and Bednarek (£5.4m) for a combined £55.1m.

Out went Van Dijk (£70.9m) and Rodriguez (£12.3m) for a combined £85.3m.

This led to a negative net spend of £28.0m, the second successive year Southampton have been in such a position.

Southampton failed to spend well, with the signings of Carrillo and Hoedt not going to plan while Bednarek is young and the jury is still out on whether he will be a success. Lemina however has shown promise and looks a good signing. 

The sale of Van Dijk may not have helped the Saints on the pitch, but it did off the pitch as Southampton recorded a profit on player sales of £68.9m, meaning without the sale of Van Dijk (and to a lesser extent Rodriguez), Southampton would have recorded a loss of just over £40m.

This means that with costs sets to rise and revenue to remain at a similar level this year, Southampton are likely to record a large loss due to the lack of big sales this year.

In cash terms, Southampton spent £65.9m and received £79.9m, a net cash flow in of £14.0m which helped boost the club’s cash reserves substantially. This is likely to be reversed next year once the Van Dijk cash is spent.

More worryingly, Southampton are owed £35.0m in transfers (of which £30.4m is due this year). However, Southampton owe other clubs £74.0m in transfers (of which £40.9m is due this year), a net debt position on transfers of £39.0m which may affect future transfer plans, with some of the Van Dijk cash probably earmarked to pay these transfer fees.

Southampton also have potential transfer fees payable of £19.2m if certain transfer clauses are met.

Debt Analysis

As Virgil Van Dijk left, in came the money for Southampton as cash levels rose. Cash reserves shot up from £40.6m to £57.1m (41%).

The balance owes a lot to the sale (and timing) of Van Dijk as the club are yet to spend a large amount of it. Southampton also received new loans of £20.5m which boosted cash substantially.

Debt levels remained relatively stable, dropping slightly from £37.8m to £37.3m (1%) despite new loans, as Southampton move some debt (capitalised) to equity and used it repay some bank debt, meaning the amount moved to equity will now not be repaid. This saw £23.1m of debt taken off the books and new shareholder loans enter with 4.25% of interest from their new owners. This replaced bank loans with interest of 0.5% which should see interest costs rise next year.

Therefore, Southampton saw their net cash position balloon from £2.9m to £19.8m (583%), meaning the club are in great financial health. Survival is still of paramount importance due to their profitability already falling and the need to at least maintain current revenue levels and sell players to remain in profits and at good cash levels. 

The new owners have yet to really invest heavily in Southampton and it remains to be seen what their level of ambition is, although the sacking of Hughes shows they’re not content to be in a relegation battle. A net spend this summer is a positive sign (although largely due to the sale of VVD), and fans will be hoping this is a sign of things to come.

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Stoke City ended a decade of Premier League football with relegation after a dismal 19th placed finish. The knock-on effect of this relegation has huge ramifications on their finances going forward and even in their final Premier League season.

Despite no lack of investment in the playing squad, Stoke failed to meet expectations on and off the field leading to a huge loss of £31.9m after 4 years of profit. This loss was exclusively due to player related costs (excluding wages) which will be detailed below.

This article analyses the financial accounts of Stoke City for the 2017/18 season, let’s jump right into the numbers.

Revenue Analysis

After year on year revenue growth since 2013, Stoke experienced their first of what is likely to be a long decline in revenue as revenue fell from £140.0m to £127.2m (9.1%).

Matchday revenue surprisingly increased albeit marginally, rising from £10.5m to £10.9 (3.8%). Being the club’s last season in the Premier League, their fans apparently didn’t want to miss the action, supporting their team passionately and commendably so until the end of the season. A return to the Championship is likely to see matchday revenue fall as ticket prices drop as well as attendance.

Commercial revenue remained stable, increasing by 1% to £11.1m as Stoke failed to attract new sponsors and will be worried of the impending departures as their current sponsors look to exit their deals. This is likely to see commercial revenue falling sharply next year as sponsors activate exit clauses and penalties relating to Stoke’s relegation.

Broadcasting revenue was the only area of revenue to actually fall, decreasing from £108.7m to £100.9m (7.2%) as the club finished 19^th, 6 places lower than the previous season. This saw revenue drop by around £1.5m per place, with the club also achieving the same Third Round domestic cup performance as last year. Broadcasting will see the biggest drop in revenue as the riches of the Premier League will no longer be available to Stoke, with a drop of around 50% a big possibility.

Overall Stoke have a troubling financial year ahead with revenue likely to drop by more than a third to £70m or less as fans, sponsors and Premier League TV money begin to disappear.

Expense Analysis

Stoke worryingly saw a large increase in their costs in 2017/18 despite poor performance and dropping revenue. Stoke’s operating costs rose from £134.8m to £179.7m (33.3%). This continues an upward trend in costs since 2014 for Stoke who grew in ambition after surviving a few years in the Premier League.

The main culprit for this rise was player amortisation which more than doubled from £23.6m to £55.9m (136.9%) with £29.4m of this due to impairment of players deemed worthless following relegation. Such an impairment is very rare and shows poor buying decisions given the size of the impairment. Outside of this, Stoke invested heavily in the club during the season with no success as the wrong players were purchased for large sums.

Lease rentals of the stadium and training ground remained at £2.1m.

Wages also rose, increasing from £84.9m to £94.2m (11.0%) as new players joined for high wages, replacing players on lower wages in the process. This rise will be reversed next year as some high earners leave following relegation (e.g. Shaqiri) while relegation wage drop clauses are likely to come into effect. If such clauses were not in place for players such as Joe Allen and Charlie Adam etc. Stoke may struggle to remain financially competitive with such high wages on their books.

The wage rise is equivalent to an extra £179k a week.

As a personal cost to relegation, Stoke’s directors saw their pay fall from £806k to £711k (13.4%) after such a poor season.

With all of Stoke’s debt being from their owner, Stoke only have interest income which is minimal at £52k.

Stoke will need to get their costs under control after relegation unless they manage a quick return to the top flight, wages will fall next year as mentioned above as will amortisation as there is unlikely to be an impairment again as well as players likely to be leaving, reducing amortisation further. Stoke will be hoping to reduce operating costs to around £120m.

Transfer Analysis

Stoke had a busy transfer season in 2017/18 with 6 players arriving and 6 departing the Britannia Stadium.

In came Kevin Wimmer (£17.5m), Badou Ndiaye (£14.4m), Kurt Zouma (Loan – £7.0m), Bruno Martins Indi (£6.9m), Moritz Bauer (£5.6m) and Konstantinos Stafylidis (Loan – £0.5m) for a combined £51.9m.

Out went Marko Arnautovic (£20.1m), Joselu (£5.0m), Phillip Wollscheid (£2.3m), Jonathan Walters (£2.1m), Glen Whelan (£1.5m) and Phil Bardsley (£0.8m) for a combined £31.6m.

This gave rise to a net transfer spend of £20.3m, down on last year’s net spend of £31.3m.

The transfers clearly did not go to plan with Wimmer in particular being an expensive mistake as the players failed to perform for Hughes or Lambert, costing Stoke their Premier League status.

One positive is the profit on players sales (from an accounting perspective) was high at £22.3m, primarily due to the sale of Arnautovic.

From a cash perspective, it was an expensive transfer window to as the club spent £56.4m in cash while only receiving £27.6m, giving a net cash outlay of £28.8m, slightly less than last year’s £30.6m net outlay.

Worryingly Stoke also owe a further £36.1m in transfers of which £30.3m is due in the next 12 months while they are only owed £18.9m in transfers of which all is due in the next 12 months.

Stoke have minimal contingent transfer clauses with only a potential outlay of £600k expected.

Net Debt Analysis

Stoke have a strong cash position as their cash in the bank rose, increasing from £12.4m to £21.9m (76.6%) despite making a loss this year as they brought in some transfer income (£27.6m) as well a cash injection from Mr. Coates of huge £47m.

As alluded to above, debt rose from £75.7m to £122.7m (62.1%) as Mr. Coates injected £47.0m in cash to help with the running of the club showing their financial vulnerability and lack of sustainability, it was also possibly required to comply with Financial Fair Play rules.

Peter Coates is most likely hoping to not have to continue plugging money into the club however this may be needed over the next couple of seasons to keep the club ticking over as they get their finances under control.

All in all, this means Stoke’s net debt rose from £63.3m to £100.8m (59.2%), a substantial increase that is not sustainable in the long run. Stoke must find a way to either control their costs or secure a rapid return to the Premier League, I know what their fans will be hoping for. However, after a poor start to the season it remains to be seen whether Mr. Coates will tighten the purse strings and focus on financial survival over promotion.

Stay tuned to Financial Football News for further in-depth analysis of the finances of all Premier League and Championship clubs and much more by following our social media platforms (via the logos at the bottom of this page) and signing up to our newsletter.

 

Hull City were back in the big time, securing promotion back to the Premier League at the first attempt. They did not however learn from their previous relegation, with their lack of financial power making relegation almost inevitable, especially after the shock pre-season resignation of Steve Bruce. The late appointment of Marco Silva gave the club some hope, however this was not enough to prevent a return to the Championship.

A run to the League Cup Semi-Finals was a high note of the campaign while financially it was a great year, with profits rising to a record £34.8m after a loss in their only season back in the Championship of £20.7m, further highlighting the riches available at England’s top table.

Let’s delve into the numbers.

Revenue Analysis

Returning to the Premier League pays, with Hull seeing revenue nearly triple from £41.9m to £116.9m (179%) on their return with huge increases in all areas of revenue.

The most vital increase was broadcasting revenue, more than tripling from £29.7m to £93.9m (216%) on the back of a huge uplift in TV payments as part of the new Premier League TV deal. This is even after considering the parachute payments received last year after relegation. The club also benefitted from their heroic League Cup run that further increased broadcasting revenue.

Matchday revenue surprisingly rose a huge amount, increasing from £9.2m to £16.1m (75%) on the back of fan excitement for a return to the Premier League. Ticket price increases plus fuller stadiums were apparent as fans flocked back to the stadium after promotion, whist their League Cup run also meant more home games in that competition than usual.

Commercial revenue more than doubled, increasing from a measly £3.0m to £6.9m (130%) as the club exploited its brief Premier League return successfully. The club will be hoping to keep some of these sponsors for next year, however a disappointing Championship season will make this very difficult.

Hull are going to see another huge drop in revenue next season after relegation, compounded by a poor Championship season where the club finished 18th in the Championship, the same position they finished in the Premier League last season. The club will see their plummeting revenue offset slightly by parachute payments with revenue likely to be around the £40m mark, a huge 65% drop.

Expense Analysis

Hull’s expenses soared after promotion, rising from £61.8m to £107.5m (73.9%) as the club attempted to compete financially to survive.

Amortisation costs rose significantly, increasing from £20.7m to £32.6m (57.5%) showcasing some player investment but not enough on a club’s Premier League return, indicating a conservative approach as they looked for a sustainable solution to Premier League survival.

The club also paid £690k to lease their KC Stadium home, an increase of £68k on last season as prices rice.

Hull saw a slight increase in interest costs, rising from £3.9m to £4.3m (10.3%) due to their relatively high debt levels that goes some way to explain their prudent financial approach as of late.

Wages more than doubled from £30.0m to £61.3m (104%) on the back of compulsory wage uplifts on existing players who the majority of would have had promotion wage rises locked into their contracts. The club also would have seen wages increase after incoming players demanded high wages from the new Premier League club. This huge wage increase represents an astonishing £602k a week extra on what the club were paying players last year.

Hull had a low tax bill this year after utilising some of last year’s losses to reduce the amount of tax payable. Hull paid a measly £0.9m in tax representing a 2.5% effective tax rate.

Hull will expect expenses to fall as relegation wage drop clauses come into effect while players were sold reducing the wage bill even further whilst also reducing amortisation costs. A drop of over 50% is very possible as the club reacclimatise to the Championship.

Transfers Analysis

Hull went for quantity in the summer when quality was what was needed. However, with the purse strings tightly held by the owners, Hull brought in 9 players while only 3 departed to try and compete.

In came Mason (£13.9m), Grosicki (£8.1m), Henriksen (£4.8m), Marshall (£3.7m), Evandro (£2.3m), Keane (£1.1m) and Weir (£0.2m) while Ranocchia (£1.2m) and Elabdellaoui (£0.9m) both arrived on season long loan deals. This came in at moderate transfer outlay of £36.0m.

Out went Snodgrass (£10.8m), Livermore (£10.4m) and Diame (£4.9m) for a combined total of £26.0m.

This meant Hull had a prudent £10.0m net transfer spend on their Premier League return, this was still a significant increase on the £21.3m in net transfer income Hull received after relegation.

Hull’s signings did okay, none were ground-breaking successes and neither were any resounding flops considering prices and expectations – you get what you pay for.

Hull spent cash in the year on transfers of £32.4m compared to £9.9m last year. They also brought in cash of £33.3m compared to £19.8m after the significant sales of last season began to pay the cash they owed. This interestingly shows that Hull brought in more cash on players then they spent, showcasing a lack of ambition to stay in the Premier League.

Hull made a huge profit on player disposals as this figure rose from £13.0m to £29.9m (130%) after the transfers of Snodgrass, Livermore and Diame.

Hull also have potential contingent transfer fees payable of £3.2m, whilst they still owe £6m for previous transfers and are owed a chunky £15m.

Asset/Liability Analysis

Keeping with Hull’s theme for the year is their debt levels, further prudence in this area led to cash levels rising while debt levels fell as the club used their Premier League return as a short-term cash boost.

Cash levels exploded, rising from a measly £1.3m to a healthy £21.1m after a profitable year and the huge cash inflow from transfer sales.

Debt levels fell considerably, declining from £100.6m to £81.3m (19.2%) as the club looked to become more sustainable after repaying some debt with their cash surplus rather than invest in players, potentially to aid compliance with Financial Fair Play after previous run-ins with UEFA.

Net debt levels dropped significantly, falling from £99.3m to £60.2m (39.4%) as the club became more conservative and the owners will be hoping this puts the club in good stead despite disillusioning previous managers in Steve Bruce and Marco Silva who both thought it was a tough ask.

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Manchester United enjoyed a mixed season that ultimately ended in jubilation as the side won the Community Shield, League Cup and most importantly, the Europa League – gaining entry to this seasons Champions League, their ultimate goal.

The season started with promise after the then world record transfer of their former youth player Paul Pogba, along with the huge presence of Zlatan Ibrahimovic supposed to guide the club to domestic and European glory under the management of Jose Mourinho.

This didn’t come to fruition as they finished 6th in the Premier League however they will take solace from their cup victories.

Off the pitch the club had another great season, reaching new record revenue figures while boosting profits by 7.7% to £39.2m while also decreasing net debt levels.

Lets delve into the numbers.

Revenue Analysis

Revenue rose to record levels, rising from £515.3m to £581.2m (12.8%) after the new Premier League TV deal came into effect and a successful Europa League campaign.

Commercial revenue rose by a measly amount, increasing from £268.3m to £275.5m (2.7%) due to lack of major commercial sponsorship deals with their main two deals, Adidas and Chevrolet having many years remaining on them, both these deals represent 13.6% and 10.2% of their total revenue. Manchester United’s commercial revenue consisted of sponsorship deals (£162.3m), merchandise sales (£104m) and mobile content sales (£7.7m).

Broadcasting revenue increase by the most, rising from £140.4m to £194.1m (38.2%) after the new Premiere League TV deal came into effect, representing £174.1m of this amount. The lack of Champions League was offset by domestic cup and Europa League success.

Matchday revenue was also on the rise, increasing from £106.6m to £111.6m (4.7%) on the back of their cup success leading to more home games which increased gate receipts.

The Premier League interestingly accounted for 25.4% of total revenue at £147.6m, while the Europa League campaign brought in a cool £48.5m – more than a lot of Champions League teams can say.

Revenue is likely to increase slightly this year with a  good chance of breaking the £600m barrier after their Champions League campaign despite their relatively early exit. A lack of cup success this year (unless they win the FA Cup) will have a negative effect on revenue, however this will potentially be offset by a positive commercial year.

Expense Analysis

Operating expenses broke the £500m mark for the first time as Manchester United invested heavily as they look to return to their glory days. Operating expenses rose significantly from £436.7m to £511.3m (17.1%).

Amortisation costs were also on the up after significant player investment, rising significantly from £88.0m to £124.4m (41.4%).

Other expenses increased from £91.2m to £117.9m (29.3%) due to the costs of having more games being given as the primary reason for this big jump.

Out of all operating expenses, wages took up a great deal, rising from £232.2m to £263.5m (13.5%) after heavy player investment bringing with them premium wages, representing a huge £602k extra a week in wages!

The club also had exceptional income rather than costs this year due to the reversal of an impairment charge for a player that they wrote off but was then reintegrated into the squad. Unfortunately the player in question is not named however we speculated the player in question to be Ashley Young who was previously surplus to requirement before Mourinho found a left back role for the England international.

Net finance costs increased from £20m to £24.3m (21.5%) after adverse foreign exchange movements against Manchester United.

Tax expense rose from £12.5m to £17.3m (38.4%), an effective tax rate of a huge 44% due to a combination of technical tax/accounting rules with the club subject to taxation in various jurisdictions.

Transfers Analysis

Manchester United took last year’s transfer headlines with their sensational world record breaking swoop for former player Paul Pogba in a £94.5m move. Joining him at Manchester United were Mkhitryan (£37.8m) and Bailly (£34.2m) while they had a notable free transfer incoming of Zlatan Ibrahimovic. These players joined the club for a combined £166.5m.

Leaving the club were 5 players in Scneiderlin (£20.6m), Depay (£14.4m), McNair (£4.7m), Blackett (£1.6m) and Keane (£1.1m) for a combined £42.4m while Valdes, Powell and Schweinsteiger all left on free transfers.

This led to a net spend of a huge £124.4m increase on last year’s £48.7m, a incredible 155% rise.

The signings did okay with Zlatan in particularly impressing, almost single handedly pushing united to multiple victories while Bailly also showed great promise despite injuries. Mkhitaryan flatters to deceive while Pogba failed to consistently live up to his huge price tag under so much pressure.

Manchester did however record a profit on player disposals this year of £10.9m compared to a loss of £9.8m in the previous year.

Asset/Liability Analysis

Manchester United are known for their huge debt levels, which this year broke the £500m barrier. However rising cash levels caused net debt levels to fall to the clubs delight as they look to enhance the sustainability of the club.

Debt rose from £490.1m to £503.4m, a measly 2.7% rise primarily due to adverse foreign exchange movements.

On the other hand cash rose significantly from £229.2m to £290.3m (26.7%) on the back of a good financial year for the club with rising revenue bringing in more cash to the clubs coffers. This was despite Old Trafford improvements (£3.5m), Training ground improvements (£5.4m), interest payments (£19.5m) all increasing and taking up more of the clubs cash.

Also increasing was player transfer costs with £193.8m in cash going out to clubs compared to £138.1m in the previous season, due to this season’s transfers plus the fact they are still paying large sums for Martial and Di Maria despite the latter leaving the club 2 years ago.

This has led to net debt falling from £260.9m to £213.1m (22.4%) which will be pleasing to the board and their shareholders.

I hope you enjoyed this article! Share with a Manchester United fan.

Here is your Matchday Money article for Premier League gameweek 32 (31 March – 01 April 2018), where we will estimate the matchday gate receipts taken at all Premier League games this week using are exclusive methodology which also incorporates season ticket sales.

Here are the Premier League results for gameweek 32:

Crystal Palace 1 – 2 Liverpool

Brighton 0 – 2 Leicester

Manchester United 2 – 0 Swansea

Newcastle 1 – 0 Swansea

Watford 2 – 2 Bournemouth

West Brom 1 – 2 Burnley

West Ham 3 – 0 Southampton

Everton 1 – 3 Manchester City

Arsenal 3 – 0 Stoke

Chelsea 1 – 3 Tottenham

Premier League Matchday 32 Analysis

Brighton once again take home this weeks prize for having the fullest stadium, fans were not rewarded for their efforts as they fell to a disappointing 2-0 defeat to Leicester. In this defeat Brighton achieved a fantastic 99.9% capacity utilisation.

Completing the top 4 were  Newcastle, Chelsea and Manchester United, all achieving 99.2% and over. Newcastle fans flocked to see their relegation crunch game with Huddersfield and were duly rewarded with a narrow win. The average for stadium capacity utilisation this week for Premier League clubs was 96.9% despite two clubs in particular achieving a low utilisation.

West Ham are used to being towards the bottom of the utilisation charts and were there once again, achieving an 86.2% utilisation in their 66,000 seater stadium.

Joining them in the 80’s was a doomed West Brom side with fans finally giving up on their soon to be Championship side as they fell to yet another loss.

Manchester United sit pretty at the top of this week’s attendance charts, recording an attendance of 75,038 fans in their comfortable 2-0 victory over Swansea.

Despite having the lowest capacity utilisation this week, West Ham recorded the third highest Premier League attendance this week with 56,882 fans attending their excellent 3-0 win over fellow struggler Southampton. Completing the Top 4 this week was Arsenal and Newcastle who both achieved attendances of over 52,000. The average attendance this week was a high 42,442 with a lot of the big guns playing at home this week.

Watford  took this week’s prize of the lowest attendance as 20,393  witnessed their agonising 2-2 draw with Bournemouth. West Brom and Crystal Palace were the only other clubs to have attendances below 26,000.

Manchester lead the way this week in matchday revenue,  taking home just over £2.8m and 3 points against Swansea.

Completing the top 4 were again Arsenal, Chelsea and West Ham, all taking in excess of £1.7m, while Newcastle and Everton also both cleared £1m in takings.

At the other end of the scale Stoke and Bournemouth prop up the table due to low away allocations of around 2,000 seats

The average takings were a high £744k, due to the amount of big takings from some of the larger clubs this week.

As mentioned Manchester United took home the prize due to their 75,000 seats and high ticket pricing, with Arsenal a close second and Chelsea a distant third despite taking over £1.7m.

Chelsea charged the highest ticket this week at around £60  for their blockbuster tie against Tottenham, fans feel short changed after the devastating loss to their London rivals while they also look to have surrendered their top 4 chances.

Arsenal, Everton and West Ham all charged around £45 in comparison.

West Brom  charged the lowest ticket prices with their commendable £30 as they looked to entice fans to support their troubled squad to no avail.

The average ticket price this week for home games was around £43.

Watford and West Brom took the least from the Premier League home games this week, taking around £450k as due to attendance and ticket pricing respectively.

Home teams had an poor week taking a lowly 13 points from 30.

Leicester  lead the way this week after receiving a surprisingly sizeable allocation for their game against Burnley at Turf Moor  bringing in around £1m. Huddersfield, Southampton, Manchester City and Tottenham  all took home around £90k after being given roughly 3,000 away seats for their respective games.

Stoke playing away to Arsenal languish at the bottom this week after deciding to only take 2,024 seats for the game which finished 3-0.

Premier League away allocations averaged at a high 2,782, after generous allocations by many clubs.

That’s it for this week’s Premier League Matchday Money article – I hope you enjoyed, Please share!

Here is your weekly financial football news round-up to keep you up to date with all things financial football! This is your round-up for the week commencing 26th February 2018, featuring Liverpool, French League 1, Tottenham, Real Madrid, Serie A, Euro 2020.

Arsenal Release Interim Results

Arsenal this week released their financial results for the 6 months to November 2017 with footballing profits down from £54.2m to a measly £15.6m (71.2%) due to a combination of falling revenue and rising costs from the lack of Champions League football, the first time in 21 years without Europe’s top tier competition.

An overall profit was realised only because of a £58.4m profit on player disposals compared to the previous year where a profit of just £6.3m was realised, further information to anger the Arsenal fans.

A full analysis is coming tomorrow.

The French Goes Chinese in Vatti Deal

The French National team have signed Chinese kitchen manufacturer Vatti as an official partner for the next year, seeing the Chinese company gain exposure throughout France’s World Cup campaign.

As part of the deal, the French national team and Vatti will join forces in co-branded promotional campaigns organised in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau.

Liverpool release Financial Results for 2017

Liverpool announced their financial results with the key results being:

• Overall revenue increased by £62m to £364m
• Reported profit after tax £39m
• Further net cash investment of £91m on players and infrastructure (£95m invested in FY2016)
• Six new player signings
• Work starting on a new £50m training ground in the summer
• 12 new commercial partnerships

A further analysis will be available once their accounts have been released in the coming weeks.

MediaPro Shakeup Serie A TV Distribution 

Serie A TV rights winner MediaPro have announced a bold new distribution model for the Series A clubs that will put more money in the hands of Serie A’s lesser lights.

The new model will reduce the current spread ratio from teams at the top to the bottom from 4:1 to 3:1 meaning the gap in TV money received will be reduced, helping to make the league more competitive.

The aim is to give more opportunities for the smaller clubs to compete in the hope of a more entertaining league that will bring in more TV money in the future after Serie A struggled to get media companies to meet their reserve price this year over €1bn.

Leicester Record Breaking Profits 

The full business benefits of Leicester City’s monumental Premier League title victory in 2016 have finally emerged, with the Midlands club announcing a huge pre-tax profit of £92.5 million for the year to 31 May 2017 was announced on the club’s website

This is one of the largest profits recorded by a Premier League club and comes off the back of the title win and the subsequent Champions League Campaign where Leicester were the last English team standing.

Full analysis will be available once the accounts have been released.

UEFA Boost Euro 2020 Prize Money

UEFA have announced a 23% increase in prize money available at EURO 2020, with the 24 qualifiers sharing a prize pot of £327m.

Each qualifying nation is guaranteed a £8.25m with a further £1.3m for each win and £0.7m for each draw, meaning the competition winner can take away a huge £30m compared to £24m at EURO 2016.

Real Madrid Dream Big In VR Deal

Champions League Champions Real Madrid have become the first football club to release their very own Virtual Reality (VR) app, with 200 million downloads worldwide already.

The app, Dream VR will upload content monthly that will give Real Madrid fans “a first-hand insight into the Real Madrid experience, which to date has been available to very limited number of fans.”

The app is free to download and can be found here on the app store.

Spurs Face Flurry Of Early Away Games Next Season

Tottenham are set to play their first three or four Premier League games away from home to make the finishing touches to the their stadium amid delays.

This is after the Premier League sent out a fixture questionnaire in order to gauge any preference or issues that would need to be considered when they create their fixture list, Liverpool had a similar arrangement last year when they were finishing the expansion of Anfield.

It remains to be seen whether this will have any impact on the club.

Nottingham Forest Record Kit Deal

Championship club Nottingham Forest have announced a record breaking shirt deal with kit manufacturers Macron starting from next season.

Arsenal’s FA Cup conquerers have replaced Adidas with a far more lucrative contract from the US sportswear brand who are looking to increase their UK presence, willing to pay over the odds to get key targets.

Nottingham Forest will be looking to stave of this seasons relegation threat before investing this commercial revenue into the playing squad.

Here is your weekly financial football news round-up to keep you up to date with all things financial football! This is your round-up for the week commencing 18th December 2017, featuring Leicester City, Facebook, Burnley & AC Milan.

Leicester Renew Their Vowels With Local Firm Lanes Fine Jewellery 

Leicester have announced the continuance of their 3-year partnership with local jewellers Lanes Fine Jewellery for another year. The deal will see the jewellers brand promoted on advertising boards at the ground  and in matchday programmes. They will also gain some access to Leicester players for their own advertising projects.

A Belgium Takeover

Belgium giants Anderlecht have been taken over by Belgian pharmaceutical entrepreneur Marc Coucke for an estimated £88m. Coucke founded medicine company Omega Pharma, selling it for £3.2bn in 2014. Coucke also owns Belgian side KV Oostende and surprisingly, he will still be able to despite this potential conflict. Anderlecht will be hoping for some serious investments to improve their domestic fortunes as they are 3rd in the league currently while also hoping to be more competitive in Europe.

Facebook Continue To Dip Their Toes Into Football

Facebook are to continue their assault into football by streaming their first ever French Ligue 1 game through Belgian TV provider Eleven Sport. The move will be an acid test for any potential bid for the recently tendered French Ligue 1 TV rights.

Burnley’ Foreign Exchange Deal

Burnley have announced Russian online broker, Teletrade as their official Forex trading sponsor on a one-year deal with the potential for extensions. This is a further commercial success to the team currently in 6th in the Premier League and they will hope to continue to exploit their domestic success in order to increase their commercial revenues and profile.

AC Milan & Financial Fair Play – Big Problems

AC Milan have seen their plea for a voluntary settle agreement refused by UEFA in light of their Financial Fair Play failings. The club have a loss in their accounts of EUR 32m for the last 6 months, with sanctions in place should the loss exceed EUR 32m for the WHOLE YEAR! AC Milan spent over EUR 250m last summer which hasn’t paid of on the pitch and UEFA have no confidence in the club’s business plan to get them out of their current financial mess, meaning they will continue to be held under the monitoring process by UEFA until there are financial improvements, with sanctions a possibility. AC Milan are currently also seeking refinancing options.