Upbeat mood at Dortmund

Borussia Dortmund posted an €11m pre-tax profit in 2022/24 (€10m after tax), which represented a €41m improvement on the previous season’s €30m loss.

Revenue rose €48m (13%) from €377m to €425m, a new club record, boosted by profit from player sales increasing €10m (15%) from €63m to €73m. This was partially offset by €15m (3%) growth in operating expenses, while net interest payable was up €2m to €6m.

There was good growth across all three of the main revenue streams, though commercial was the star of the show, rising €33m (18%) from €184m to €217m, a new high for the club. Match operations nearly doubled from €23m to €44m, as COVID restrictions were lifted, while broadcasting increased €12m (9%) to €158m.

After nine consecutive years of profits, which generated €227m between 2011 and 2019, Dortmund were hit hard by COVID, which led to three consecutive losses, adding up to €150m that “put our business model to the test”.

However, it was business as usual in 2022/23 as the club returned to profitability. Indeed, the board expects another net profit this season of between €15m and €25m.

Good profits from player sales

Dortmund’s profit from player sales rose €10m from €63m to €73m, mainly due to the sales of Erling Haaland and Manuel Akanji to Manchester City. The previous season had benefited from Jadon Sancho’s transfer to the other Manchester club, United.

Jude Bellingham’s big money move to Real Madrid for more than €100m was booked after these accounts closed, so will be reflected in the 2023/24 financials.

Dortmund cited this as a good example of the importance of such deals to the club’s business model, as the transfer policy “presents significant opportunities to generate substantial income”, though they also admitted that this might be “contrary to sporting interests”. In fact, Dortmund’s transfers have generated nearly €1 billion sales proceeds in the last decade.

Bayern’s revenue was around 80% higher than Dortmund, which is a massive difference between the first and second ranked clubs in a country. This is far more than the gap in all other leading countries – with the exception of France, where PSG are in a class of their own financially.

Dortmund earned €73m from the Champions League after reaching the last 16, where they were eliminated by Chelsea. This was €9m more than the previous season, but was still a lot lower than Bayern’s €107m. Dortmund have earned an impressive €347m from European competition in the last five years, so it is no surprise that the club described the potential income here as “extremely lucrative”.

Dortmund have the highest crowds in Germany, averaging over 81,000, which represents a near sell-out of the Signal Iduna Park. The closest challengers are Bayern Munich 75,000, followed by Schalke 04 61,133 and Hertha BSC 53,652.

Dortmund’s board appear to be in an upbeat mood, “We are confident that these figures herald a return to our former strength and that the most difficult economic period in more than 15 years is now well and truly behind us. From an economic standpoint, the key takeaway is that our business model is fully functional again now that the pandemic-related restrictions have been lifted.”

It's no deal say Spurs insiders over Taiwanese takeover

Senior figures at Tottenham Hotspur insisted on Friday that they had not been informed of any deal to sell Daniel Levy’s stake in the club. A business group, Eight Sports Capital — which is said to include a billionaire Taiwanese financier — claimed that it had an agreement in place to buy a 24.99 per cent stake in ENIC, the club’s majority owners, from Levy, who owns 29.88 per cent. The Times has been told Ng Wing Fai and Brooklyn Earick form part of the group, having both been linked previously to potential takeovers of the Premier League club. The Taiwanese businessman, Richard Tsai, is also said to be part of the consortium. He is reportedly worth £7 billion. Last year Earick, the former DJ and tech entrepreneur, was part of an attempted £4.5 billion takeover, which was “unequivocally rejected” by Spurs. An ENIC spokesperson said: “We can confirm that neither ENIC nor THFC are aware of any sale by Daniel Levy’s Family Trust of its minority stake in ENIC, THFC’...

Spurs CEO attacks luxury training base

The Tottenham Hotspur chief executive Vinai Venkatesham has issued a withering assessment of the way the club was run under Daniel Levy, likening the state-of-the-art training centre to a five-star hotel rather than a centre of high performance. Venkatesham was appointed to his role in April 2025, having stepped down as chief executive at Arsenal the previous summer. However, he has said that some aspects of the club were “in a significantly worse state” than he expected. “Our training centre is amazing, one of the best, if not the best in the world,” Venkatesham told BBC Sport. “But when you look around, it looks more like a five-star hotel than it does a performance environment. That will change over the summer. I think there are many areas where the club hasn’t got the right level of expertise.” He explained that the football side of operations was the club’s main downfall when he arrived last year. [One Spurs fan wryly observed that it was like a water company sayi...

Fulham requires big funding from owner

After lengthy delays, Fulham’s shiny, new Riverside Stand has finally opened, creating “a unique Thameside destination with first class facilities for supporters and partners on match days, as well as for the wider community year-round”. This ambitious project has increased Craven Cottage’s capacity by around 4,000 to 29,600, while it has also taken advantage of the club’s fantastic location and wealthy catchment area by including two Michelin star restaurants, a rooftop swimming pool, corporate hospitality and event space, all benefiting from views of the Thames. Chief executive Alistair Mackintosh observed, “Fulham is the sort of club that can have a business class or first class and have fans that turn left on a plane.” Indeed, there is also an exclusive members club – with a football season ticket as an optional extra. It’s fair to say that “the times they are a-changing”, as this is a long way from the traditional pie and a pint. However, in a world where clubs face the tw...

The Political Economy of Football V2

Search This Blog