Newcastle revenues decline under Ashley

The authoritative Swiss Ramble has added his comments on Newcastle United's 2016/17 accounts. He notes, 'Revenue has decreased by £1m since Ashley’s arrival in 2007 from £87m to £86m, despite £22m more central TV money. Commercial has fallen by £13m (46%), while match day is £10m (30%) lower. In fairness, 2017/18 revenue in PL will be much higher, estimated at £175-180m.'

It should be noted that if one factored in inflation, the £1m decline would look larger. Using the Bank of England inflation calculator £87m would be £110.8m in 2016 so the real decline in revenue is almost £24m. In response to a tweet from me, the Swiss Ramble pointed out that this would be an even higher figure if one took account of 'football' inflation.

He also notes, 'Over the years player sales have had a decent impact on Newcastle United profits contributing £180m since 2008. The club would have made small losses without this activity until 2014.' Average net spend under Ashley has been around £6m a year.

According to the Deloitte Money League Newcastle United had the 14th highest revenue in the world in 2007 before Ashley’s takeover, just £19m lower than the 10th placed club. In 2017 this gap has soared to £263m. Based on 17/18 estimate, Newcastle would be in 19th position, just ahead of Napoli.

'Commercial income should increase in 17/18, thanks to new shirt sponsor Fun88, reportedly worth £6m a year, plus first sleeve sponsor MRF Tyres. Puma have been the club’s kit supplier since 2010.'

However, 'Not only is the club's commercial income lower than £28m that Ashley inherited, but they have fallen way behind rivals, e.g. gap to Tottenham Hostpur has grown from £11m to £58m in that time.' The Swiss Ramble argues, 'The ubiquitous presence of Sports Direct advertising surely puts off other potential partners.'

The club 'enjoyed the fifth highest wage bill in England before Ashley bought it in 2007, but in 10 years this has risen by just £20m (34%) from £60m to £80m, while others have increased wages by significantly more, e.g. Tottenham Hotspur up £83m (190%) from £44m to £127m, so Newcastle dropped to 15th.'

'Nerwcastle's £152m debt is about twice as much as the £77m Ashley took on in 2007 and is the highest in his reign. It’s the first time an overdraft has been required since 2013. It was the second highest in the Championship, only below Brighton £207m (new stadium & training ground).'

Wolves get raw deal from FFP

I used to see a lifelong Wolves fan for lunch once a month. He was approaching ninety, but still went to games. Sadly he passed away the other week. As football finance guru Kieran Maguire has noted, Wolves continue to be constrained by financial fair play rules. Radio 4 this morning described them as this year's 'crisis club' and the pessimists have certainly been piling in. Martin Samuel wrote sympathetically in the Sunday Times yesterday, saying that the Premier League drives talent away with regulatory red tape: 'Why could Al-Hilal sign Neves? Because Wolves needed the money. And why did Wolves need the money? Because the club had to comply with an artificial construct known as financial fair play. So Wolves are going skint, yes? No. There is no suggestion that Wolves are in financial trouble, only that they are failing to meet the rigours of FFP. Wolves’ owners appear to have the money to run the club, and invest in the club, and in fact came up with a pow

Gold standard ground boosts Tottenham's income

The gold standard in European football grounds is the Tottenham Hotspur stadium in north London, a £1bn construction project completed in 2019. Its impact on the club’s finances has become increasingly clear as the effects of the pandemic have faded. Previously, the average fan would spend less than £2 inside the ground on a typical match day, but now that figure is about £16, thanks to new facilities including the longest bar in Europe and an on-site microbrewery. Capacity has gone up from 36,000 at the club’s previous home of White Hart Lane to 62,000. The new stadium — built on land adjacent to White Hart Lane — has opened the door to a broad range of other events that have helped to push commercial income up from €117mn in 2018 to €215mn in 2022. Last year, Tottenham hosted US singer Beyoncé for five nights on her global Renaissance tour, two NFL matches, as well as rugby games and heavyweight boxing bouts. Money brought in from football has gone up too. Match day income is

Charlton takeover approved

The long awaited takeover of Charlton Athletic by SE7 Partners from Thomas Sandgaard has been approved: https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/se7-partners-obtain-efl-approval-for-charlton-athletic-takeover/ Charlton have had unhappy experiences with owners for over a decade, so how this works out will remain to be seen. There is certainly potential there, but will it be realised? This interview with Charlie Methven gives detail not available elsewhere: https://thecharltondossier.com/charlie-methven-on-the-record/

The Political Economy of Football V2

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