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Better accounts at Wednesday reflect limited squad investment

Once again, there are whispers that owner Dejphon Chansiri is preparing Sheffield Wednesday for a sale, though there have been similar noises on many previous occasions with no resulting transaction.

In 2022/23 Wednesday’s pre-tax loss was virtually unchanged at £7.2m, even though revenue increased by £3.0m (18%) from £16.3m to £19.3m, as this was offset by operating expenses also rising £3.0m (13%) from £23.7m to £26.7m.  Wednesday’s £7.2m loss was one of the highest in League One in 2022/23, though a lot better than Derby County £30.4m and Ipswich Town £18.2m.

Although it’s never great to lose money, Wednesday’s losses in the last two years have been pretty small compared to their recent past and the best by far in the Chansiri era.  Wednesday lost a hefty £132m in the five seasons up to 2020/21, averaging £26m a year.

Wednesday’s revenue will obviously have increased last season following promotion to the Championship, mainly thanks to the higher TV distribution, but also from growth in gate receipts and sponsorships.   The Swiss Ramble’s estimate is that Wednesday would have generated around £27m in the Championship (before the new EFL TV deal), based on higher crowds, a ticket price increase and assumed 5% growth in commercial income.

Wednesday’s average attendance increased 13% from 22,469 to 25,380, reversing a trend of falling crowds. However, this was still below the recent peak of 27,306 in 2016/17.

Following promotion, Wednesday had the seventh highest crowd in the Championship with 26,762. This was actually more than six clubs in the Premier League, so it’s fair to say that Wednesday can be considered as a big club from this perspective.

Wednesday reportedly have the most expensive adult season tickets in the Championship. In 2024/25 the cheapest ticket available cost £460 for early bird customers, rising to a staggering £510 in the final phase.

Wednesday’s wage bill increased by £3.4m (27%) from £12.4m to £15.8m, mainly due to promotion bonuses, though this was still the second lowest in the last eight years. Wednesday will have surely increased wages following promotion in a bid to be competitive in the Championship.

Since Chansiri bought Wednesday from Milan Mandaric in February 2015, he has provided £145m funding. This has been mainly used to cover £97m operating losses, while £19m was spent on players (net), £19m paid off external loans, £5m invested in infrastructure and £3m interest.

Wednesday did well to secure promotion from League One, but life has proved to be tougher in the Championship, especially after Chansiri stopped putting his hand in his pocket.

The accounts have looked better in the last couple of years, but that is partly because of limited investment in the squad, which has made it more difficult for Wednesday to compete.

 

 

 


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