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Very good financial figures at Liverpool

The Swiss Ramble reviews the latest accounts of Liverpool FC.   The full analysis is available on his Substack page.

Liverpool returned to profitability last season, as they swung from a pre-tax loss of £57m to a profit of £15m, a big improvement of £72m in the bottom line.   Revenue shot up £89m (14%) from £614m to a club record £703m, while profit on player sales more than doubled from £22m to £53m.  However, there was steep growth in operating expenses, which rose £61m (9%) from £684m to £745m, though net interest payable slightly decreased from £9.4m to £8.5m.

One of the main drivers of the growth in Liverpool’s revenue was playing in the more lucrative Champions League, as opposed to the Europa League the previous season, which led to a steep increase in broadcasting, up £60m (29%) from £204m to £264m.

There were also increases in match day, up £14m (14%) from £102m to £116m, and commercial, up £15m (5%) from £308m to £323m. Both these revenue streams established new club highs.

The Swiss Ramble concludes: 'This is obviously a very good set of figures, as Liverpool returned to profitability, on the back of playing in the Champions League, while they also set a new club record for revenue, becoming only the second English club to top £700m.

In addition, their commercial engine has started to really motor with more growth expected in this space. They also managed to reduce both financial debt and transfer payables, while improving their cash flow.

However, to a certain extent, this represented the calm before the storm, as last summer’s huge transfer spend will be reflected in much higher player amortisation, as well as increased wages, which will also be impacted by the new contracts for Salah and van Dijk.   That said, as we have seen, this was pretty much a case of Liverpool playing catch-up with their main rivals, so they are well set to absorb the growth in the cost base.

Of course, supporters will be more concerned about the results on the pitch, so the relatively weak defence of the Premier League title will be of concern, though they still have a chance to win more silverware in the Champions League and FA Cup.


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