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Very good financial results for Celtic

Celtic’s financial results for 2023/24 were very good, as they posted a £17.8m pre-tax profit (£13.4m after tax). That said, this was down £22.9m from the previous year’s huge £40.7m profit, though in fairness that was a record for Scottish clubs. This was mainly because 2022/23 included a couple of material once-off items, amounting to £13.5m, made up of a £10m business interruption insurance claim and £3.5m compensation received from Tottenham for Ange Postecoglou. In addition, profit from player sales more than halved from £14.4m to £6.6m, though revenue rose £5m (4%) from £120m to £125m, which was a new record for the club (and indeed Scotland). However, operating expenses increased by £9m (8%) to £117m. Celtic have managed to grow their revenue by £41m (49%) since before the pandemic, up from £83m in 2018/19 to £125m. In fact, they have set a new club record in each of the last two seasons with decent growth in all three revenue streams.   The expectation is that Celtic’s re
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New investors in Wrexham

Wrexham co-owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney have welcomed New York-based Allyn family as new minority investors in the League One club. In a joint statement, the Hollywood actor duo said: “Wrexham has earned the world’s attention and we are focused on bringing on board world-class partners to help with the next phase of our growth. Based in Skaneateles, New York, the Allyns made their fortune through Welch Allyn, the global manufacturer of medical equipment. By selling an equity stake to the Allyn family, Reynolds and McElhenney have brought in welcome funds at a time when the ambitious League One club is embarking on several major infrastructure projects as well as looking to maintain the upwards trajectory that has seen Phil Parkinson’s side win back-to-back promotions. A state-of-the-art Kop stand is planned that will partly be funded by public money, Wrexham having last week appointed a new architect in Populous with a view to the new structure being open in time for

Inter cut losses

Inter Milan have seen their losses reduce by €50m to €36m.   Revenue has hit a record level not far short of half a billion pounds:  https://www.insideworldfootball.com/2024/10/29/ac-milan-closes-1023-24-finances-e36m-loss-e473m-turnover/

The impossible job: managing Manchester United

In a terse statement Manchester United have announced that Erik ten Hag has been sacked as manager. Manchester United had paid out £71.5m in redundancy payments for managers, executives and staff since the year SAF retired until 30 June 2024. Ten Hag was the fifth permanent manager to attempt to right the ship at Old Trafford following Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement in the summer of 2013. The Dutchman leaves with a reasonable claim of being a successful United manager, given he won silverware, something 14 of his predecessors did not do. In some ways, his tenure underlines how hard it is for anyone to live up to the standards set by Ferguson — who, in a pointed coincidence, recently had his ambassadorial position ended by the club — and, before him, Sir Matt Busby. No club in England has won more top-flight titles than United’s 20, but 18 were won by either Busby (five) or Ferguson (13). Those two also account for 33 of United’s 44 major trophies and, in total, 20 out of the club’

Why lawyers are among football's big earners

A modern Subbuteo set doesn't just need accountants, it also needs lawyers.   Here are some of the recent key legal cases involving football clubs with the law firms involved in brackets: Manchester City challenged the Premier League rules on sponsorship which were found to be unlawful (David Pannick KC who reportedly charges £5k an hour, two other KCs, three additional barristers and law firm Freshfields.   The Premier League's three KCs led by Sports Silk of the Year Adam Lewis KC and four more barristers instructed by Slaughter and May). The European Court of Justice ruled that Fifa's transfer regulations were unlawful after a challenge by former French international Lassana Diarra. A joint action by players' union Fifpro and European Leagues claiming that Fifa's decision to launch a revised version of the Club World Cup had put player health at risk and is in violation of EU law. Leicester, Manchester City, Nottingham Forest and Everton have faced action for all

Barca's future dominated by Camp Nou development

 Barcelona actually reported a pre-tax loss of €129m in  2023/24, compared to the prior year’s huge €471m profit, which represented an adverse swing of €600m. However, this is largely driven by the movement in economic levers, which delivered an €800m profit in 2022/23, but €141m of this gain was impaired last season. This alone led to a €941m deterioration in the bottom line. As a reminder, Barcelona had pulled these famous levers (“ palancas ”) to raise funds, albeit at the expense of sacrificing income in the future. Without the benefit of the financial levers, Barcelona would have posted a €459m pre-tax loss in the last three years, instead of the reported €466m profit In terms of normal business, revenue fell €43m (5%) from €806m to €763m, which was actually a pretty good performance, as they had to contend with a decrease of more than €100m following the temporary relocation of the men’s first team to the Olympic Stadium while the Camp Nou is being redeveloped. This was o