It’s a long way in more ways than one from Zurich’s financial district to New Cross, but the authoritative Swiss Ramble provides his usual balanced and forensic analysis of Millwall’s finances. Much more detail is available on his Substack page.
Millwall’s ability to punch above its weight should no
longer be a major surprise, given that Millwall have finished in the top ten of
the Championship on no fewer than six occasions since they were promoted from
League One in 2016/17.
There’s normally a decent correlation between wages and
performance in the football world, but Millwall comfortably outperformed their
budget in 2024/25 by finishing 8th in the league, which was seven places better
than their wages ranking of 15th. In
fact, Millwall have consistently punched well above their weight, as their
league position has been better than their wage bill in all but one of the
seasons since their promotion to the Championship, often by a considerable
margin – and they were in line with wages for the exception.
The Lions are now firmly established in England’s second
tier, having competed in the Championship in 15 of the last 17 seasons, which
is pretty good going, given all their financial disadvantages.
Given last season’s dizzy heights, optimism about the club’s
prospects is higher than it has been for some time, though expectations should
probably be tempered a little, as Millwall operate with far fewer resources
than most of their rivals.
This can be shown by a review of the club’s finances, though
the most recent available accounts are only from 2024/25. This means that they
are a full year out of date, but the figures are unlikely to have moved that
much, so any conclusions are still likely to be valid.
Good results off the pitch
The results off the pitch were also very good, as Millwall
posted a small £0.3m loss, so virtually broke-even, which was significantly
better than the previous season’s £19.1m deficit.
The improvement was almost entirely due to £21.6m profit on
player sales, compared to a £0.4m loss in 2023/24. Until 2024/25, Millwall had
rarely made big money from player sales, only generating a profit above £2m on
three occasions in the previous 20 years.
Revenue also set a new club record, rising £2.5m (11%) from
£21.4m to £23.9m, while other operating income tripled from £0.2m to £0.6m. The revenue growth was mainly driven by
broadcasting, which rose £2.1m (20%) from £10.5m to £12.6m, though commercial
climbed £0.5m (13%) from £3.5m to £4.0m. Against that, match day slightly
dropped by £0.1m (2%) from £7.4m to £7.3m.
Even after this growth, Millwall’s £23.9m revenue was one of
the smallest in the Championship, only above Blackburn Rovers £23.7m, Swansea
City £22.3m, Preston North End £20.5m and Oxford United £19.0m. They were miles
below the clubs in receipt of parachute payments, especially Leeds United, who
earned £137m in 2024/25, followed by Sheffield United £79m, Burnley £72m and
Luton Town £67m.
Millwall’s average attendance decreased by 6% from 16,544 to
15,497, though this was still around two-thirds more than the 9,407 low in the
last decade (in 2015/16). Nevertheless, Millwall’s 15,497 average attendance in
2024/25 was one of the smallest in the Championship, only above Luton Town and
Oxford United. The good news is that Millwall’s tremendous performance last
season saw a strong rebound in crowds, which surged to 17,135, the highest
average attendance since the 1950s. They also twice broke their record league
attendance at the New Den.
Opportunities
Millwall now have a good opportunity to generate more
revenue by developing the land adjoining the stadium. They have a regeneration
plan to create affordable housing, student accommodation, retail and office
space, a hotel and conference centre plus a stadium expansion. This could increase the capacity at The Den
from around 20,000 to 34,000 by adding an additional tier to each side of the
existing ground.
Millwall’s £4.0m commercial revenue was the third lowest in
the Championship, only above Oxford United £3.9m and Preston North End £3.3m. Millwall is arguably not the most salubrious
area, but the expectation would be that the club could do better commercially,
given its location “close to the heart of the City of London”.
Millwall’s wage bill rose £3.6m (14%) from £25.0m to £28.6m,
a big new club record, reflecting investment in both the playing squad and the
football management team. It was also adversely impacted by the first three
months of higher employer national insurance contributions introduced by the
Government in April 2025.
However, the magnitude of their challenge was illustrated by
the significantly higher wages at the three clubs that went up, whose figures
were inflated by promotion bonuses, namely Leeds United £103m, Burnley £82m and
Sunderland £54m.
Millwall spent £14.5m on player purchases in 2024/25, which
was not only a huge new club record, but more than the previous five seasons
combined. Although they have not exactly
been pushing the boat out, Millwall have clearly ramped up their transfer
spend, as their £22.7m outlay in the last three years is nearly four times as
much as the preceding 3-year period.
Looking at the cash flow over the last five years, most of
Millwall’s £99m available funds was provided by the owners, who put in £73m of
capital, with the other £26m coming from player sales. This was largely used to
cover the club’s £61m operating losses with £25m spent on player purchases and
£12m invested in infrastructure.
Millwall invested a lot of money in infrastructure in
2024/25, shown by the fact that its £7.2m capital expenditure was more than the
last 15 years combined. The club
purchased the freehold to the Calmont Road training ground, as well as
investing in new pitches at the training ground, additional training facilities
and stadium improvements at The Den, including new hospitality and office
spaces in the Barry Kitchener Stand.
Owner funding
Millwall’s increased investment, both in the squad and
infrastructure, has only been made possible by funding from the owners
In fact, the four largest annual capital injections provided
by the Berylson family have all come in the last four years, including £15.7m
in 2024/25, which means that there has been no slowdown since the tragic
passing of John Berylson after the reins were handed to his son James. In total the owners have now put in a
chunky £126m of funding, entirely in the form of share capital.
Of course, owner financing is nothing unusual in the
Championship, but Millwall’s £73m in the last five years was the seventh
highest in the division, though four clubs received more than £100m in this
period, namely Leeds United £330m, Cardiff City £133m, Norwich City £115m and
QPR £110m.
The Swiss Ramble concludes: ‘Reaching the Premier League
might seem like an unattainable dream for clubs like Millwall, though there is
greater opportunity after the extension of play-off places to eighth this
season, but they have done well to even put themselves in the conversation. After winning their first two games of the
season, Millwall certainly should not be ruled out.’
In memory of journalist and Millwall fan Rod Liddle.
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