The Political Economy of Football V2

In the unlikely event of an American consortium asking my advice on buying an EFL club, I would say go for a ‘stand alone’ club, on that has no rivals in its vicinity.  Shrewsbury Town meets that criterion, being the only EFL club in Shropshire or Salop. Salop is a very rural county by English standards.    The county town is Shrewsbury.   To its east is the ‘new town’ of Telford which has its own non-league club and also quite a big Wolves following.   Salop has quite a high retired population who may have historic allegiances elsewhere. So it’s a challenge.   It reminds me in many ways of Shropshire pop group T’ Pau of ‘China in my Hands’ fame.   I still have their vinyls, but friends dismiss them as one hit wonders. T’ Pau may just have a nostalgic following, but the Shrews can be revived. Former U.S. and Premier League goalkeeper Brad Friedel is part of an American group that is trying to buy English Football League strugglers Shrewsbury Town...

Football finance guru Kieran Maguire reckons that Shrewsbury Town could take a £1m hit following relegation to League Two:  https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c77nk7e3r6xo Efforts have been made to sell the club, but a prospective American bidder ran into difficulties. Those interested in takeovers are often advised to look at clubs which have no immediate geographical competition.  The Shrews are the only EFL club in Shropshire, but (leaving aside Telford to the east) it is a predominantly rural county. Thus, if one makes a comparison with Norwich City as a stand alone club, Shropshire's population is 325k whilst that of Norfolk is not far short of one million.

 'Strong action' has improved Shrewsbury Town's finances, but they are still making a loss and seeking outside investment:  https://www.shropshirestar.com/sport/2025/02/14/roland-wycherley-strong-actions-have-help-improve-shrewsbury-towns-finances/ The club serves a large rural area and has to face clubs with very wealthy owners such as Birmingham City, Wrexham and Wycombe Wanderers.   League One is becoming more like the Championship as outside investors crowd in.

Almost all Premier League clubs are now American owned and some foreign investors have seen the Championship as a cheaper route to the riches of the top flight.   In time the franchise owners will question whether their investments can be relegated which does not happen in the US. Charlton fans, admittedly among football's leading moaners, sometimes assert that League One is a pub or crap league, so it was interesting to read in this week's  Football League Paper  what two newly promoted managers think. Gareth Ainsworth forged Wycombe Wanderers into a League One force and indeed, somewhat to my surprise, they are currently chairing the division. Ainsworth has now taken on the unenviable task of reviving Shropshire's finest and he made a first rate start against moneybags club Birmingham City on Saturday. Ainsworth says: 'Over the years, this division has probably run away from the smaller clubs. League One has got stronger and stronger over the years.   Som...

Talks on the sale of Shrewsbury Town are ongoing.   The club made a £3m loss in 2022/23:  https://www.shropshirestar.com/sport/football/shrewsbury-town-fc/2024/09/04/shrewsbury-town-sale-talks-ongoing-says-ceo-liam-dooley/

Shrewsbury Town cut their pre-tax losses from £1.46m to just over £180,000 in 2021/22 and saw turnover increase by £2.1m.   The club is also debt free.  These are good financial results for League One:  https://www.shropshirestar.com/sport/football/shrewsbury-town-fc/2023/03/31/shrewsbury-town-accounts-reveal-21-million-turnover-increase/ A full explanatory report from a supporter is here:  https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.shrewsburytown.com%2Fsiteassets%2Fdocuments%2F2223%2Fstfc-accounts-june-2022-at-report.docx&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK

Shrewsbury Town made losses of nearly £725,000 in 2019/20 as Covid-19 started to hit income.  Bigger losses are expected in the current financial year:  https://www.shropshirestar.com/sport/football/shrewsbury-town-fc/2021/06/02/shrewsbury-town-accounts-reveal-loss-of-more-than-700000-for-201920-season/ Revenues were boosted by a lucrative FA Cup run including a tie against Liverpool. The club considers that it is well positioned to deal with a challenging financial environment.

Shrewsbury Town are in a stronger position that 99 per cent of clubs with no debts and reserves in the bank: Showing others the way forward Football finance guru Kieran Maguire recently singled out chief executive Brian Caldwell for praise as one of the best in the business. We often talk about the difference made by managers, but less about the key contribution of a good CEO. The club recently reported a profit of £2.25m for 2018/19, the fourth year in the row they have reported a profit, a stark contrast to many clubs in the lower reaches of the Football League. They still managed to invest heavily in the playing squad, including a record transfer fee, and in infrastructure. Considerable emphasis is placed on good relations with supporters.

Shrewsbury Town have been the surprise package of League One this season and success on the pitch has been matched by good financial results. Admittedly, turnover was down from £6.9m to £4.7m in 2016/17. However, the previous financial year had seen a cup run and a televised game against Manchester United. Profits were a healthy £404k, down from £1.2m. The club has £1m cash in hand in the bank. The club reports, 'During the year we eventually managed to secure the sale of just two acres of the Club's land at the stadium to Lidl UK which has proved paramount to the sustainability of the football club [without there would have been a loss] and enabled us to invest heavily in the seven acres at Sundrone Castle in our new magnificent training ground which is wholly owned by the Club.' The amount realised for the land sale was £987,804. The training ground was bought from a director in return for £400,000 of shares. Total staff costs are 75 per cent of turnover, a little...