Chelsea lead WSL finances

The authoritative Swiss Ramble reviews the finances of the Women's Super League, Overall the WSL reported a £7.2m pre-tax loss for the division, an improvement on the previous season’s £8.9m.

WSL clubs invariably operate at a loss with their parent companies covering the shortfall. Only four clubs made (small profits), led by Manchester United £101k, but eight of the 12 lost money – four above a million: Brighton £1.9m, Chelsea £1.8m, Tottenham £1.3m and Reading £1.2m.

Chelsea £3.849m had the highest reported revenue, just ahead of Arsenal £3.763m followed by Manchester City £2.8m, Manchester United £1.7m, Everton £1.7m and Liverpool £1.7m. WSL revenue partly depends on how much income is shared from the parent company in the commercial area.

Similar to revenue, Chelsea have the highest expenses in WSL with £5.7m, well ahead of Arsenal and Manchester City, both £3.8m, followed by Brighton £2.2m and Manchester United £2.0m. Relegated Liverpool lagged behind with a budget of only £1.7m

WSL broadcast rights were owned by BT Sport and the BBC, who cover their costs rather than pay for rights – in stark contrast to the men’s game. A £500k prize fund was added in 2019/20, thanks to Barclay’s sponsorship deal, with the champions receiving £100k and last place £6k.

There will be a new 3-year WSL TV deal from 2021/22 worth £8m a year with Sky showing up to 44 live games and BBC 22 (18 on BBC One or BBC Two). Revenue split between WSL 75% and Women’s Championship 25%.

Furthermore, there is a new 4-year UEFA Champions League TV deal from 2021/22 worth €24m a year, more than 4 times more than the current figure. Teams in group stage guaranteed €400k (almost 5 times current money for reaching last 16), while winner gets €1.4m maximum.

Despite the impressive growth over the previous deal, the winners of the UEFA Women’s Champions League will still only receive 1.6% of the amount the winners of the men’s competition will receive (€1.4m compared to €85.1m), albeit up from 0.5%.

Not all WSL clubs publish wages, but Manchester City is highest of those that do provide details with £2.5m, followed by Arsenal £2.2m and Brighton £1.3m. Given that Chelsea’s total expenses are much higher than City, their wages are almost certainly the highest in the league. The 56 staff at Chelsea is significantly more than the next highest, Tottenham and Reading 36.

Unsurprisingly, the budget at WSL clubs is considerably lower than their male counterparts, especially at Liverpool and Manchester United, 0.3% and 0.4% respectively, e.g. Liverpool £1.7m vs. £564m. Highest ratio is at Reading 2.9%, which is more a reflection of low men’s budget

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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