Aberdeen’s better results in 2022/23 on the pitch also helped with their finances, as they swung from a £2.2m net loss to a £1.1m profit. Profit from player sales shot up from £1.0m to £7.5m, which more than offset a £6.3m operating loss.
Revenue rose £1.9m (14%) from £13.9m to £15.8m, but
operating expenses were up by even more, increasing by £2.8m (15%) from £19.2m
to £22.0m.
Two of Aberdeen’s revenue streams grew: gate receipts were
up by more than a third (£1.1m) from £3.0m to £4.1m, while commercial also rose
£1.1m (15%) from £7.3m to £8.4m. On the other hand, broadcasting dropped £0.3m
(8%) from £3.6m to £3.3m.
Not all clubs have published accounts for 2022/23, but
Aberdeen’s £1.1m profit is currently the second best financial result in
Scotland for last season, albeit miles below Celtic’s record-breaking £33m
profit.
In general, Scottish clubs tend to run a tight ship, so
almost all of them were in a narrow range between £2m profit and £2m loss, i.e.
effectively break-even. Rangers were a bit of an outlier with their £4.1m loss.
Aberdeen would have made a large loss without the £7.5m gain
from player sales, which is easily the club’s best ever performance. To place
this into perspective, this was more than the last 15 years put together.
Aberdeen’s £1.1m pre-tax profit is the first time that the
club has made money in eight years. In fact, they have only been profitable
twice in the last decade, though most of their losses in this period were
relatively small, so the aggregate deficit was only £8.4m.
Aberdeen chairman Dave Cormack further explained the club’s
strategy: “To compete at the highest levels in Scottish football, and to
qualify for Europe each season, we continue to invest more in player wages and
transfer fees. This has led to annual operating losses which, over time, have
to be balanced by positive player trading and increased commercial and football
performance-related income.”
As a result of only finishing 10th in the league in 2021/22,
Aberdeen did not qualify for Europe, which was the first time that it did not
achieve this ambition since 2014, which the club said caused a “significant
loss of income”.
However, Europe has not actually been a huge money spinner
for Aberdeen, as they have earned less than a million Euros in TV money in each
of the last few seasons. This was because they did not get past the third
qualifying round in the Europa League or the play-off round in the Europa
Conference League
Aberdeen’s average attendance rose nearly 20% from 13,103 to
15,636. The club said that fan engagement initiatives, like the Red Shed, Dons
Day Out and the trialing of Fan Zones, had contributed to these strong numbers.
However, this was only the fifth highest in Scotland,
obviously miles below Celtic 58,714 and Rangers 49,116, but also lower than
Hearts 18,513 and Hibernian 17,453.
New stadium
Aberdeen have been looking for a new stadium since 2009, due
to the difficulties in further developing Pittodrie. An initial project near
Loirston Loch in the south of the city was approved by the council, but hit
problems due to questions around land ownership and the council’s rejection of
an application to build a community sports centre.
As a consequence, the club submitted new plans in 2016 to
develop a new stadium and training facilities near Westhill. Although this
project overcame legal challenges from local residents, progress stalled due to
the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Most recently in 2021, Aberdeen proposed another new stadium
design at the city's beachfront close to Pittodrie. The club said that the
council has now started to have more detailed discussions about these plans.
Wages
Aberdeen’s wage bill rose £1.7m (17%) from £10.2m to a new
club record £11.9m, due to continued investment in the first team squad and
higher bonuses for finishing third and guaranteeing UEFA group stage football.
As a result, wages have grown by more than 50% in the last
six years. Cormack said that this growth “ensures we remain competitive with
other clubs, such as Hibs and Hearts, who are also making significant
investments.”
Even after last season’s increase, Aberdeen’s £11.9m wage
bill is still a fair way below Hearts’ £15.4m, so remains fourth highest in
Scotland. It is around £50m less than Rangers £64m and Celtic £61m. Put another
way, the wages at the Big Two are nearly six times as much as the Dons.
In the past, Aberdeen have pointed out the difficulties of
maintaining a competitive squad, particularly with rising wages in the English
market, which was perhaps best evidenced when Adam Rooney moved to 5th tier
Salford City in 2018 for a higher salary.
In fact, Aberdeen’s £11.9m wage bill is lower than all but
two English Championship clubs, namely Blackpool and Peterborough United (both
since relegated).
Aberdeen’s owners have provided £21.1m of funding in the
last decade, though almost all of this (£19.9m) has been in the last five years
with only £1.2m in the preceding 5-year period. However, £14.9m of this was in
2017 and 2018, essentially to finance the new training facility, with
relatively little since then.
This is a pretty solid set of financials from Aberdeen,
demonstrating that their new focus on player trading can deliver. That said, it
does rely on making a couple of lucrative player sales each year to offset
largish operating losses.
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