Premier League football club Sunderland is targeting major US cities that identify with its industrial heritage as tougher financial rules push England’s leading clubs to seek out fresh sources of revenue. Tom Burwell, the club’s chief executive, said he wanted to tap into Sunderland’s history of mining and shipbuilding, as well as its regeneration this century, as a way to drive interest in the team beyond its home in north-east England. “Our opportunity is to build on an identity and a business that’s deeply rooted in the 30km radius of Sunderland,” he told the FT. “It’s our responsibility to land that story in markets that we’re able to, then grow fan bases and ultimately grow revenues.” Burwell singled out Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Detroit as big post-industrial cities where Sunderland’s story had struck a chord during their recent pre-season tour of the US. “Our view on North America is to be highly targeted alongside partners and distribution platforms, and wrap our ve...
Arsenal have drafted in major global management consulting firm Boston Consulting Group (BCG) to conduct strategic exercises that explore operational improvements at the club. The Premier League champions could look to cut costs but are also eying improvements in other areas of the club to ensure they maintain their current status in the game. From a financial perspective, Arsenal announced record revenues of £691million ($934.4m) while almost breaking even with an overall loss of £1.4m for the 2024-25 season. Their underlying operating losses before the disposal of player registrations did grow from £50m in 2024 to £65m in 2025, however. Overall operating costs rose by £53m from £147.9m to £200.8m, which at the time, Arsenal said reflected increased staging costs, specific direct costs of delivering increased revenues, certain residual property matters and inflationary pressures. A really top football club has to find different ways of staying ahead of the curve, many of t...