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Ahead of the curve Annual Review of Football Finance Sports Business Group - Arko ...
Ahead of the curve
Annual Review of
Football Finance
Sports Business Group
July 2017
                        A
Ahead of the curve Annual Review of Football Finance Sports Business Group - Arko ...
Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                        Section title goes here

This 26th edition of the Deloitte Annual
Review of Football Finance documents
English and European professional football’s
business and commercial performance
over the 2015/16 season, which will be
remembered for Leicester City’s remarkable
Premier League title triumph.

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Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                                                                                                Contents

Contents

Foreword                                       02   Edited by
                                                    Dan Jones
Delivering results worldwide                   04
                                                    Sub-editors
The leading team in the business of football   06   Adam Bull, Chris Stenson

Europe’s premier leagues                       08   Authors
                                                    Michael Barnard, Calum Ross, James Savage
Deloitte Football Intelligence Tool            14   and Christopher Winn

Premier League clubs                           16   Sports Business Group
                                                    Telephone: +44 (0)161 455 8787
For all the teams in China                     22   PO Box 500, 2 Hardman Street, Manchester, M60 2AT, UK
                                                    E-mail: sportsteamuk@deloitte.co.uk
Over the top?                                  23   www.deloitte.co.uk/sportsbusinessgroup

Football League clubs                          24   July 2017

Player transfers                               28
For the good of the game                       29
Stadia                                         30   Please visit our website at
                                                    www.deloitte.co.uk/sportsbusinessgroup to download a
It’s in the game                               32   copy of the full report and to purchase the Databook.

                                                    Databook price £1,000

                                                    Our 32 page Databook includes over 8,000 data items on
                                                    the various topics covered in this report, prepared on the
                                                    basis of our specialist and long-established methodologies.

                                                                                                                      01
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Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                        Foreword

Foreword

Welcome to the 26th edition of the Deloitte Annual Review of                                             revenues, as has been the case for well over           the same three teams – Paris Saint-Germain,
                                                                                                         a decade now. To compound this situation               Bayern Munich and Juventus – won the leagues
Football Finance, compiling our analysis and commentary on                                               the 2016/17 season’s results will reflect a new        in France, Germany and Italy, respectively.
the recent financial developments within, and prospects for,                                             Premier League broadcast rights cycle, with            Barcelona, meanwhile, retained their La Liga
                                                                                                         central distributions increasing by an average of      crown; their third title in four seasons.
the world’s most popular sport.                                                                          £38m per club.

Whilst the introduction to last year’s 25th         2015/16 will be followed by a domestic deal                                                                 Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!
edition of the Annual Review chronicled the         starting in 2017/18, which promises to deliver       The Winner Takes it All                                In 2015/16 Premier League revenues rose to a
key developments in football finance over the       an impressive 85% increase in revenue on             The collective selling of broadcast rights, and        record £3.6 billion. Each club generated more
last quarter of a century, this year we return      2015/16 levels.                                      the associated relative equality in distribution,      on average than the whole top division of 22
to two familiar themes as we assess the                                                                  has been a fundamental strength of the Premier         clubs did in total in 1991/92 and commercial
2015/16 season – the continuation of relentless     On a pan-European level, the large increases in      League over the past 25 years. The league’s            revenues exceeded £1 billion for the first time
revenue growth across Europe’s major leagues,       UEFA distributions in 2015/16 made qualifying        revenue distribution mechanism – the most              in the league’s history. The aforementioned
in particular the Premier League, and the           for these competitions even more important to        equal of the ‘big five’ European leagues – and         Premier League champions, Leicester City,
commitment of this money to spending on             clubs. Examples such as increases of 50% and         the effective ‘minimum guarantee’ that all clubs       secured a notable revenue increase of
players via transfer fees and wages, again led by   80% in the amounts being received by Spanish         receive as a consequence enables strength              £25m yet still generated less than 40% of
English clubs.                                      and English clubs respectively drive intense         in depth and intense competitiveness as                the average revenue of the ‘big six’ clubs.
                                                    domestic competition to secure these rewards.        exemplified by the shock of Leicester City’s           These six collectively responded strongly and
                                                    Such continent-wide revenue increases, bringing      Premier League title win in 2015/16. In no other       immediately to Leicester’s accomplishment
Name of the Game                                    incentives to compete and stretch financial          major footballing nation could a club with a           by spending more than any other clubs in
New broadcasting deals taking effect in the         resources, reinforce the growing importance          similar profile to Leicester City be able to collect   the summer transfer window of 2016 before
2015/16 season for UEFA and others, together        and use of financial regulations in football. This   c.£90m in broadcast revenue alone, to help             subsequently occupying the top six places in
with those confirmed in England and elsewhere       drive for club sustainability and development        level the playing field and give such an ‘outsider’    the league in the 2016/17 season.
for 2016/17 and beyond, continue to have a          throughout Europe is a topic discussed further       a shot at glory without reckless overspending.
profound effect on the financial landscape of       in For the good of the game.                                                                                Whilst English clubs have therefore remained
Europe’s ‘big five’ leagues. New deals in Italy                                                          Whilst Leicester’s remarkable achievement              ahead of their European counterparts in
and Spain – the latter being its first year of      However, in spite of the aforementioned              made it four consecutive different winners of          terms of revenue generation, the 2015/16
collective selling thus improving the equality of   enhanced deals and improved UEFA                     the Premier League for the first time in the           season also demonstrated their attempts to
distributions – provided substantial increases      distributions, the Premier League continues to       competition’s history, this unpredictability did not   enhance their on-pitch position by already
on previous arrangements whilst the new             power ahead of the other four big European           extend to the rest of Europe’s ‘big five’ leagues.     committing to spend some of the increased
Bundesliga deal for international rights in         leagues, particularly with regard to broadcast       Indeed, 2015/16 was the fourth year in a row that      broadcast revenue arriving in 2016/17. English

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                                                                                                                                                                                                           Foreword

clubs remained by far the largest spenders on                                                              I Have a Dream                                        Take a Chance on Me
transfers in the world, whereas German and                                                                 The three clubs promoted to the Premier               This 26th edition of the Annual Review also
French clubs were net ‘exporters’ of talent in the                                                         League in 2016/17 generated combined                  marks our first inclusion of another form of the
2015/16 season. Notably, the Premier League                                                                operating profits of £28m, a year after               sport, with a brief discussion of professional
collectively recorded net transfer receipts                                                                recording a combined operating loss of £47m           competitive video gaming, or eSports, in It’s
for the first time in a single transfer window                                                             in the Football League Championship, starkly          in the game. Although long considered a niche
in January 2017, primarily due to exports to                                                               illustrating the difference in profitability          activity, this perception is changing, driven by
Chinese clubs. Whether this will continue given                                                            between the two divisions. In contrast to the         impressive audience figures, revenue potential
increased local regulation remains to be seen,                                                             Premier League, Championship clubs continue           and technological advances.
a development discussed further in For all the                                                             to overspend relative to their revenues, with the
teams in China.                                       “Over the three seasons from                         value of promotion continuing to escalate. The        In Over the top? we comment on the latest

                                                       2013/14 to 2015/16, Premier                         two clubs promoted to the Premier League for
                                                                                                           the first time at the end of the 2016/17 season
                                                                                                                                                                 developments in football’s media landscape,
                                                                                                                                                                 driven by consumers’ desire for anytime,
Money, Money, Money                                    League clubs generated                              – Brighton and Hove Albion and Huddersfield           anywhere access to content, and the potential
As Premier League transfer spending has
continued, so has wage cost growth, which in
                                                       combined operating profits                          Town – are guaranteed a minimum uplift in
                                                                                                           revenue of £170m over the next three seasons.
                                                                                                                                                                 threats to traditional Pay-TV platforms posed by
                                                                                                                                                                 new market entrants such as over-the-top (OTT)
2015/16 led to a total of £2.3 billion, an increase    of £1.6 billion, more than                          This is likely to rise to more than £290m if          streaming platforms, social media networks and
of 12%. Wage costs grew at almost twice the
rate witnessed in each of the previous two
                                                       they managed in total over                          they survive more than one season, and may
                                                                                                           grow further when the next Premier League
                                                                                                                                                                 other technology companies.

years as clubs spent in anticipation of the extra      the previous 16 seasons                             broadcast rights deals commence in 2019/20.
                                                                                                                                                                 Thank You for the Music
broadcast revenue in 2016/17. However, over
a longer cycle, the previous trend of revenue
                                                       combined.“                                          Championship clubs again (for the third time in       Finally, I would like to wish continued success
increases being wholly consumed by wage costs                                                              four seasons) spent more on wages than they           in their careers to four colleagues and former
now appears to have been replaced by a more                                                                earned in revenue in 2015/16 and also suffered        contributors to our Annual Review who left us
prudent approach – since 2012/13, just 44%            costs and league position, with the division’s top   record operating losses of £261m, continuing          for new roles this year, and most importantly
of revenue increases have been accounted for          six wage spenders in 2015/16 filling the top six     to stretch their financial limits in the hope of      thank my colleagues in the Sports Business
by wage growth, whereas in the five years to          league positions in 2016/17.                         securing the riches and glory accompanying            Group including new recruits and authors,
2012/13 this figure was 99%.                                                                               promotion to the Premier League. As a result of       Henry Wong, and all those from across the
                                                      Premier League clubs recorded a third                this financial performance aggregate net debt         football community that have helped us compile
As Leicester City’s achievement has confirmed,        consecutive season of operating profits in           increased to £1.3 billion in the 2015/16 season,      this year’s report.
there are other factors beyond wage                   excess of £500m, and although they returned          more than double the revenue of the division.
spend which contribute to clubs’ on-pitch             to cumulative pre-tax losses following two           The division’s new profitability and sustainability   We hope you enjoy this edition.
performance. For example, in 2015/16 whilst           consecutive seasons of profit this was due           rules effective from the 2016/17 season, largely
Leicester won the league despite being ranked         to exceptional items. Over the three year            aligned with the approach for Premier League
15th by wage costs, defending champions               broadcast rights cycle from 2013/14 to 2015/16,      clubs, seem unlikely to deliver a turnaround in       Dan Jones, Partner
Chelsea finished eight places lower than their        Premier League clubs generated combined              Championship clubs’ financial results.                www.deloitte.co.uk/sportsbusinessgroup
wage costs rank of second, and relegated Aston        operating profits of over £1.6 billion; more than
Villa twelve places lower than their wage costs       they managed in total over the previous 16
rank of eighth. The 2016/17 season reverted           seasons combined, and we expect a return to
to a much stronger correlation between wage           record-breaking pre-tax profits in 2016/17.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                 03
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                                        Sports Business Group

Delivering results worldwide

Deloitte has a unique focus on the sports sector, led from                                                 Strategic programme
the UK and operating across the world. Our experience, long-                                               management
                                                                                                           Continuing assistance to the
standing relationships and understanding of the industry                                                   British Olympic Association
mean we bring valuable expertise to any project from day one.                                              through to the Tokyo Olympic
                                                                                                           Games 2020.

For more than a quarter of a century, across            Deloitte are also audit and tax advisers to many
over 40 countries, we have worked with more             sports businesses.
organisations in sport than any other advisors.                                                            Bid support
Our specialist Sports Business Group at Deloitte        For further details on how Deloitte can add        Lead advisors to Ireland’s bid
provides:                                               value to your project and your business,           for the Rugby World Cup 2023.
                                                        visit our website www.deloitte.co.uk/
•   Business planning                                   sportsbusinessgroup
•   Revenue enhancement and cost control                Telephone: +44 (0)161 455 8787
•   Market analysis and benchmarking                    Email: sportsteamuk@deloitte.co.uk
•   Strategic review                                                                                       Bid support
•   Economic impact studies                                                                                Financial feasibility and
•   Venue feasibility and development services                                                             economic impact of the
•   Sports regulation advice                                                                               city’s bid to host the 2022
•   Due diligence                                                                                          Commonwealth Games.
•   Corporate finance advisory
•   Business improvement and restructuring
•   Forensic and dispute services
                                                                                                           Competition format
                                                                                                           Review of the competition
                                                                                                           structure and calendar for
                                                                                                           major international table
                                                                                                           tennis events.

04
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                                        Sports Business Group

                           Consulting services
                           Financial and technical
                           consulting services for the
                           privatisation of sports clubs in
                           the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

                           Regulatory development
                           Feasibility assessment of
                           financial fair play regulations
                           for the Arabian Gulf League.

                           Consulting services
                           Analysis of various strategic
                           options for international Rugby
                           Union.

                           Competition format
                           Independent financial and
                           strategic analysis of potential
                           domestic T20 competition
                           structures.

                                                             05
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                                        Sports Business Group

The leading team in the business of football

Improve your strategy and governance
Working together with our clients, Deloitte’s                                Business
unique experience, insights, robust evidence-                                planning
based advice, and credibility in sport helps
build a strong case and consensus for change                                                      Commercial
amongst key stakeholders and enables our                                                         development
clients to positively influence and react to                         Restructuring of
their wider political, economic and social                          competitions and
environment.                                                                calendar
                                                                                                  Media rights
We help deliver effective governance, strategies,                                                    analysis
competitions and impact analysis for sports                          Economic impact
organisations to build their integrity, credibility,                         studies
quality, popularity and value.
                                                                                             Market analysis
                                                                                            and development
Optimise your revenues                                                Governance and
Deloitte bring experience, information,                          organisational design
insights and leading practices to help our
clients to analyse and grow their revenues and                                                   Ticketing and
profitability.                                                                           hospitality strategies
                                                                     Strategy review
We give our clients a competitive advantage by                      and development
delivering solutions to help engage their fans,
grow attendances, promote their brand, build                                               Benchmarking and
value from new markets and accelerate growth.                                                   best practice

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                                                                                             Sports Business Group

                                            Make informed investment decisions
Advice on the                               Deloitte has an extensive track-record of
development of stadia                       delivering tailored added-value services to a
and other facilities                        wide range of investors, owners and financiers in
                        Sports tax          respect of various sports assets around
                        advisory            the world.
Targeting and
acquiring a sports                          We utilise our experience, industry knowledge
business                                    and global networks to provide independent
                        Audit and           and trusted advice to help our clients
                        compliance          understand the commercial realities of their
Financial and                               proposed investments, and plan successfully for
commercial due                              the future.
diligence
                        Investigatory and
                        dispute services
Disposing of a                              Ensure financial integrity
sports business                             Deloitte brings to clients an unrivalled
                                            deep understanding of sports’ regulatory
                        Club licensing      requirements, how the business of sport works
                        and cost control    in practice, and the wider economic, accounting
Business and            regulations         and legal environment in which a sport operates.
venue market
feasibility studies                         Our clients benefit from our expert review,
                        Risk                advice and reports to manage their risks, comply
                        management          with statutory requirements, resolve disputes,
                                            and implement effective sport regulations.

                                                                                                                07
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                                        Europe’s premier leagues

Europe’s premier leagues

Driven by continued growth in broadcast                  Chart 1: European football market size – 2014/15 and 2015/16 (€ billion)
rights values in European football’s biggest                                                                                                                      The impact of Euro 2016
leagues, and the impact of UEFA Euro 2016,                                                                                         ‘Big five’ European leagues
                                                                    2.2                               3.1
total European football market revenues                             10%
                                                                                                      13%                                                         The increase from 16 to 24 teams at
reached almost €25 billion in 2015/16, a                                   0.6                                0.7                  Non ‘big five’ top leagues     UEFA Euro 2016 in France helped UEFA
                                                             2.4            3%                                3%
13% increase on 2014/15.                                     11%                                2.6                                                               record a significant increase in its
                                                                    €21.8 billion                     €24.6 billion
                                                                                                11%
                                                                                                                                   ‘Big five’ countries’ other    revenues in the 2015/16 season.
                                                                          2014/15                            2015/16    13.4       leagues                        The tournament, which was attended
                                                                                    12.0                                54%
European football market                                      4.6                   55%
                                                                                                                                                                  by roughly 2.5 million fans and
                                                              21%                                  4.8
The ‘big five’ European leagues grew collective                                                    19%                             FIFA, UEFA and National        watched in 230 countries worldwide,
revenues by €1.4 billion (12%) in 2015/16, 59%                                                                                     Associations                   generated gross revenue of over
of which was due to increased broadcast                                                                                                                           €1.9 billion (an increase of more than
revenues, and 31% due to increased                                                                                                 Non ‘big five’ other leagues   €500m on the previous Championships
sponsorship and other commercial revenues.                                                                                                                        in 2012) and a net profit of more than
In recent years, step-change increases in                cycle, resulting in the restatement of prior year                     Source: Leagues; UEFA; FIFA;       €800m.
broadcast revenues have been almost the                  revenue and a marginal reduction in revenue                           Deloitte analysis.
sole preserve of English Premier League                  in 2015/16.                                                                                              European Football Championship
clubs. However, in 2015/16 new broadcast                                                                                                                          revenues have more than doubled since
arrangements in Germany, Italy and Spain,                The 2015/16 season was notable for just how                                                              the 2004 tournament in Portugal, and
coupled with a significant increase in UEFA
broadcast distributions under the new three
                                                         widespread growth was across the entire
                                                         European football landscape, with revenue
                                                                                                                    The ‘big five’ European                       have increased almost 50 fold since
                                                                                                                                                                  Euro 92 in Sweden. For the 2016 event
year rights cycle, led to combined broadcast
revenue growth among the clubs in the top
                                                         increases across the non-‘big five’ European
                                                         leagues, and even clubs in the lower tiers
                                                                                                                    leagues grew                                  broadcast rights exceeded €1 billion,
                                                                                                                                                                  and represented 53% of total revenue.
divisions of those three countries of €535m.             of Europe’s ‘big five’ football markets grew
                                                         revenues by €271m (11%).
                                                                                                                    collective revenues                           Compared to Euro 96, when broadcast
                                                                                                                                                                  rights accounted for 36% of total
A successful UEFA Euro 2016 in France resulted
in a substantial increase in UEFA revenues
                                                                                                                    by €1.4 billion (12%) in                      revenue, and ticket sales 44% (just 14%
                                                                                                                                                                  in 2016) it is clear to see how the
(presented here net of distributions and
solidarity payments to clubs and national
                                                                                                                    2015/16.                                      landscape of European football finance
                                                                                                                                                                  has shifted in a similar way for national
associations to avoid double counting). FIFA                                                                                                                      team football as for club football, over
adopted new revenue recognition policies to                                                                                                                       the last two decades.
more accurately reflect its four-year World Cup

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Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                                                                                                                                                                         Europe’s premier leagues

The financial performance of the ‘big five’
European leagues in 2015/16 was heavily
                                                  returned to full collective sales in 2016/17 with
                                                  the commencement of new three year rights
                                                                                                       Growing broadcast revenues have pushed the
influenced by growth in centralised
broadcast revenues, with new collective
                                                  deals.                                               ‘big five’ European leagues even further ahead
arrangements in both Spain and Italy, and
new international rights deals in Germany.
                                                  Whereas growth in broadcast revenue has
                                                  traditionally been driven by the individual rights
                                                                                                       of their competitor leagues.
The impact of this growing, shared wealth,        deals secured by Barcelona and Real Madrid,
coupled with ever-increasing revenues             under the one year transitional collective           Chart 2: ‘Big five’ European league clubs’ revenues – 2015/16 (€m)
generated from participation in UEFA’s            sales model the average broadcast revenue
                                                                                                       6,000
club competitions, has pushed the ‘big five’      generated by the 18 other La Liga clubs,                                                                                            Matchday
European leagues even further ahead of            including UEFA distributions, was almost €45m;
                                                                                                                4,865
their competitor leagues.                         an increase of 39% on 2014/15.                       5,000                                                                          Broadcasting
                                                                                                                 1,457
                                                                                                                 30%

                                                  The majority of revenue growth in Italy came                                                                                        Sponsorship/Commercial
                                                                                                       4,000
‘Big five’ European leagues’ revenues             from broadcast rights, with the first year of the
Bundesliga clubs achieved a combined revenue      extended media rights advisory relationship                    2,577                                                                Other commercial
                                                                                                       3,000     53%         2,712
increase of €320m (13%), to remain the second     with Infront Sports & Media, and increased                                  478        2,437
highest revenue-generating football league in     UEFA distributions, resulting in a €75m (7%)                                18%
                                                                                                                                           705      1,917
                                                                                                                              773          29%
the world, and the second-fastest growing of      increase in broadcast revenue. Commercial            2,000                  29%                    523     340 1,485            Note: Commercial revenue is not
the ‘big five’ European leagues in 2015/16.       revenues grew by €58m (12%), with Juventus                                             1,232       27%     23%
                                                                                                                                                                            325   disaggregated into ‘sponsorship’
                                                                                                                              933          51%
                                                                                                                                                    1,190                   22%
                                                  alone responsible for around half of that.                                  34%                    62%                          and ‘other commercial’ for clubs in
                                                                                                       1,000
This growth was underpinned by the                                                                               831                                        204     656     164   England, Spain and Italy.
                                                                                                                 17%          528          500              11%
                                                                                                                                                                    44%
                                                                                                                                                                            11%
commencement of new two-year international        Ligue 1 clubs remained the lowest revenue-                                  19%          20%

broadcast rights deals, which delivered revenue   generating of Europe’s ‘big five’ leagues, and          0    England     Germany       Spain      Italy          France         Source: Leagues; Deloitte analysis.
growth of around €100m compared with              total revenue growth of 5% was less than that of              Average revenue per club (€m)
2014/15. Total UEFA distributions to German       any of the other ‘big five’ leagues.                           243          151          122       96             74
clubs participating in UEFA competitions
                                                                                                                Average match attendance
increased by €46m, resulting in an overall        Given that most of the stadium developments
                                                                                                                36,490       42,420     27,626     21,680          20,894
increase of 28% in broadcast revenue.             for UEFA Euro 2016 were completed some
                                                  years prior to the 2015/16 season, it was                     Stadium utilisation

German clubs continued their traditionally        unsurprising to see Ligue 1 average attendances                96%          90%          76%      52%             70%
strong commercial performance, generating         and matchday revenues remain flat in 2015/16,
total sponsorship and other commercial            following three years of growth. Olympique de
revenue of c.€1.3 billion, 47% of total revenue   Marseille’s disappointing domestic campaign
and second only to the c.€1.5 billion generated   resulted in 11,000 fewer fans attending their
by English Premier League clubs.                  matches on average than in 2014/15.

La Liga clubs’ combined revenues grew by 19%      Paris Saint-Germain, French treble winners for a
to over €2.4 billion in 2015/16; thanks to the    second successive season, were responsible for
impact of the one year transitional collective    35% of the division’s total revenue, and 60% of
broadcast rights sales arrangement. La Liga       total revenue growth.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                     09
Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                        Europe’s premier leagues

The reduction in the value of the pound                  revenue growth in 2018/19, as the full impact of      Chart 3: ‘Big five’ European league clubs’ revenues – 2013/14 to 2017/18 (€m)
over the last 12 months means that                       the new rights deals are felt.
                                                                                                               5,500
our prediction in early June 2016, of the                                                                                                                                         England             Italy
                                                                                                                                                                   5,080
combined revenues of European football’s                                                                                                               4,980
                                                                                                                                             4,865
‘big five’ leagues exceeding €15 billion in              Spain                                                 5,000                                                              France              Spain
the 2016/17 season will not come to pass.                Spanish clubs fully adopted their new collective
                                                                                                                                   4,403
Nonetheless, the continued growth in                     rights selling mechanism from 2016/17,                                                                                   Germany
                                                                                                               4,500
broadcast and commercial values means                    after a transitional year in 2015/16. The new
passing this threshold has only been                     arrangements are reported to have delivered                     3,897
delayed temporarily.                                     a total uplift in rights values of around €250m       4,000                                                          Source: Leagues; Deloitte analysis.
                                                         per season compared with 2015/16, which is
                                                         likely to take total La Liga revenues beyond          3,500
                                                                                                                                                                   3,200
England                                                  €2.8 billion. We expect the impact of the new
The Premier League’s new three-year broadcast            broadcast deals will see La Liga briefly eclipse                                              2,840
                                                                                                               3,000                                               2,990
rights cycle, which commenced at the start               the Bundesliga as Europe’s second highest                                           2,712
                                                                                                                                                       2,790
of the 2016/17 season, resulted in an average            revenue-generating league in 2016/17.                                     2,392     2,437
c.45% increase in central distributions to clubs                                                               2,500     2,275
compared with 2015/16. However, the effect of                                                                                      2,053
                                                                                                                                                       1,960       1,980
                                                                                                                         1,933               1,917
exchange rate movements mutes the impact                 Italy                                                 2,000               1,790
                                                                                                                         1,700                         1,700       1,750
of this on our calculation of the total European         Italian clubs’ revenues are unlikely to grow
                                                                                                                         1,498               1,485
market size in euro terms. We still expect the           significantly over the next two seasons, with Serie                       1,418
                                                                                                               1,500
Premier League to break the €5 billion revenue           A’s existing media rights advisory relationship
                                                                                                                                                           Projected
barrier in 2017/18.                                      with Infront Sports & Media, worth a minimum of
                                                         €990m per season, covering the six year period        1,000    2013/14   2014/15   2015/16   2016/17    2017/18
                                                         to 2020/21. Juventus’ run to the 2016/17 UEFA
Germany                                                  Champions League final will deliver increased
New, four-year, synchronised domestic and                UEFA distributions, but any further growth will

                                                                                                                                              c.80%
international broadcast rights cycles are likely to      be dependent on improving commercial deals
result in Bundesliga clubs’ combined revenues            and/or increasing matchday attendances.
exceeding €3 billion in 2017/18. The total annual
value of broadcast rights in Germany, for the                                                                                                 of projected total revenue
top two divisions combined, is expected to rise          France                                                                               growth of Europe’s ‘big five’
to over €1.4 billion over the term of the new            We forecast that French clubs will remain the                                        leagues between 2015/16
cycle – an increase of 75% on 2015/16 levels.            lowest revenue-generating in Europe’s ‘big                                           and 2017/18 attributable
However, not all of this revenue increase will be        five’ leagues throughout seasons 2016/17 and                                         to new broadcast rights
paid to clubs in the first season of the new rights      2017/18, despite the commencement of new                                             arrangements
deal, with one of the major domestic broadcast           domestic broadcast rights deals in 2016/17,
partners, Sky Deutschland, reportedly only               worth around €130m more than in the previous
paying 32% more in season 2017/18. There is              rights cycle, and AS Monaco’s run to the UEFA
therefore the likelihood of further, substantial         Champions League semi-finals in 2016/17.

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Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                                                                                                                                                                                    Europe’s premier leagues

Wage costs across Europe’s ‘big five’                Italy                                                Chart 4: ‘Big five’ European league clubs’ revenues and wage costs
leagues grew slightly more slowly than               Serie A saw a modest 3% increase in wage             – 2014/15 and 2015/16 (€m)
revenue in 2015/16, such that the average            costs, which, combined with a 7% increase in
                                                                                                          6,000
wages/revenue ratio dipped, from 62%                 total revenue, saw the wages to revenue ratio
in 2014/15, to 61%. In total, wage costs             fall from 72% to 70%. However, this was still the                       4,865
increased by 10% to €8.2 billion.                    highest of any of the ‘big five’ European leagues.   5,000
                                                                                                                     4,403

                                                                                                          4,000
England                                              France
Premier League clubs’ wages increased to             Ligue 1 wage costs exceeded €1 billion for the
                                                                                                                                                    2,712
€3 billion, more than double the total spent by      first time, as 2015/16 saw an increase of 7%,        3,000               3,047
                                                                                                                                          2,392                            2,437
                                                                                                                     2,670
the clubs in any of the other ‘big five’ leagues.    following a slight reduction in wage costs                                                                  2,053                          1,917
                                                                                                                                                                                     1,790
                                                     in 2014/15.                                          2,000                                                                                                   1,485
                                                                                                                                                                                                          1,418
                                                                                                                                                                           1,476                1,341
Spain                                                Wage cost growth outpaced revenue growth,                                             1,246    1,341        1,280                1,298
                                                                                                          1,000                                                                                            953    1,019
Clubs in La Liga overtook those in Serie A to        resulting in the wages/revenue ratio increasing
become the second-highest wage spenders of           to 69%. Paris Saint-Germain’s wage bill
Europe’s ‘big five’ leagues in the 2015/16 season.   increased by 15% to €292m, representing                  0      14/15   15/16        14/15     15/16        14/15     15/16     14/15     15/16     14/15    15/16
                                                     almost 30% of total Ligue 1 wage expenditure.                      England                 Germany                 Spain               Italy            France
Total wages increased by almost €200m (15%),                                                                          61%     63%          52%       49%          62%       61%       72%       70%       67%     69%
considerably more than the previous year’s 6%
                                                                                                                      134     152           69       75            64           74     65           67     48      51
increase, as more clubs were able to increase
wages in line with the collective increase
in broadcast rights, without compromising
operating profitability. Indeed, the league’s
                                                     Premier League clubs’                                    Revenue               Wage costs            Wages/revenue ratio          Average club wages

wages to revenue ratio reduced marginally to
61% in 2015/16.
                                                     wage costs were more                                 Source: Leagues; Deloitte analysis.

                                                     than double that
Germany
Bundesliga clubs increased wages by €95m (8%)
in 2015/16, matching Serie A and becoming the
                                                     of any of the other
                                                     ‘big five’ European
                                                                                                                                                   57%
                                                                                                                                                   of additional revenue
joint third-highest wage spenders in Europe.                                                                                                       generated by the ‘big five’
However, clubs in Germany recorded a much
lower wages to revenue ratio than those in Italy:
                                                     leagues.                                                                                      European leagues in 2015/16
                                                                                                                                                   was spent on wage costs
just 49%, compared with Serie A’s 70%. This is
only the third time in the last decade that one
of Europe’s ‘big five’ leagues has recorded a
wages to revenue ratio of less than 50%; on all
three occasions the feat was achieved by the
Bundesliga.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                          11
Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                        Europe’s premier leagues

As financial regulations at both a European              Chart 5: ‘Big five’ European league clubs’ profitability – 2011/12 to 2015/16 (€m)
and domestic level continue to have an                                                                                                                                    Future profitability
                                                         1,000
impact, in 2015/16 only Ligue 1 and Serie A                                                                                            England             Italy
of the ‘big five’ leagues recorded aggregate                                                                                                                              Significant growth in broadcast
operating losses.                                          800                                739         721                          France              Spain          revenues is expected with new rights
                                                                                                                      683
                                                                                                                                                                          cycles beginning in England, Spain and
                                                                                                                                       Germany                            France in 2016/17, with Germany to
                                                           600
England                                                                                                                                                                   follow in 2017/18. This provides the
Premier League clubs’ combined operating                                                                              397                                                 potential for greater profitability in the
                                                                                              347         316
profits saw a slight decrease, to €683m, with              400                                                                     Notes: The operating result is the     short term, particularly in the first year
                                                                                  264         250
a number of clubs looking to get ahead of the                        190                                              284          net of revenues less wage costs        of the respective broadcast deals.
                                                                                                          260
competition by spending on playing talent –                200                    96                                               and other operating costs. The
                                                                     104
and consequently wages – in advance of the                                                                                         operating result excludes player       Worryingly for Italy, Serie A – about to
                                                                                  (3)
new broadcast cycle. Impressively, 17 of the 20                      (67)                                 (35)        (38)         trading and certain exceptional        enter the third year of a long term
                                                             0
Premier League clubs recorded an operating                                        (53)       (140)                                 items. Aggregate operating results     media rights advisory arrangement
                                                                                                                      (98)
profit in 2015/16, and the results for 2016/17                                               (143)        (133)                    for Spanish clubs were not available   through to 2020/21 – has no upcoming
                                                                     (160)
may show every Premier League club generating             -200                                                                     prior to 2013/14.                      short-term ‘step-change’ opportunities.
an operating profit for the first time.                                                                                                                                   Italian clubs face a difficult challenge
                                                          -400      2011/12     2012/13     2013/14     2014/15     2015/16        Source: Leagues; Deloitte analysis.    competing, in financial terms, with their
                                                                                                                                                                          European counterparts to attract the
Spain                                                                                                                                                                     best playing talent over the coming
Clubs in La Liga have worked hard over recent                                                                                                                             seasons.
years to improve their finances, and 2015/16             Germany                                                  Italy
once again saw them rewarded with positive               Bundesliga clubs generated an aggregate                  Italian clubs recorded a significant improvement
results.                                                 operating profit of €284m in 2015/16, a 10%              in operating profit in the 2015/16 season,
                                                         reduction on their record operating profit               reducing combined losses by €95m (71%) to
In Spain, the impact of the move to collective           in 2014/15. This, coupled with La Liga clubs’            €38m, as clubs spent only around a third (€43m)
broadcast rights selling, and the more even              improved profitability, has seen Germany slip            of their €127m revenue growth on wages.
distribution of revenues from these, led to a            back into third place of the ‘big five’ leagues in
53% increase in combined operating profits in            profitability terms.
2015/16, to €397m.                                                                                                France
                                                         Despite this, Bundesliga clubs recorded                  With the increase in wage costs outstripping
Further revenue growth from the three-year               combined net transfer receipts of €21m in                revenue growth, Ligue 1 clubs recorded an
broadcast cycle commencing in 2016/17,                   2015/16, and 16 of the 18 Bundesliga clubs               aggregate operating loss of almost €100m in the
and a push from La Liga for further financial            generated a net profit after tax, an improvement         2015/16 season, a 180% increase on 2014/15
transparency and responsibility from its                 on 11 in 2014/15.                                        operating losses. The impact of the new four-
clubs, should sustain their improvements in                                                                       year domestic broadcast rights cycle, coupled
profitability over the coming seasons.                                                                            with increased UEFA distributions arising from
                                                                                                                  AS Monaco’s successful UEFA Champions
                                                                                                                  League campaign, should see losses reduce
                                                                                                                  again in the 2016/17 season.
12
Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                                                                                                                                                                             Europe’s premier leagues

The record distributions paid by UEFA to          respectively compared with the year to             Chart
                                                                                                     600   6: Selected other European league clubs’ revenues – 2015/16 (€m)
clubs participating in its competitions in        December 2015. FC Copenhagen’s participation
2015/16 was the primary factor behind             in the 2016/17 UEFA Champions League group         500
                                                                                                                 478
revenue growth in European leagues                stages also contributed to total year-on-year                  80
                                                                                                                 17%
outside of the ‘big five’. The financial          revenue growth of 36%, to more than €200m;
                                                                                                     400         178
rewards from participating in the UEFA            the fastest growth rate of any of the featured                 37%
Champions League or UEFA Europa League            leagues.
are now greater than ever. Whilst some of                                                            300
these other countries have seen increases
                                                                                                                                 203
in revenue, mainly thanks to higher value         Sweden                                                         76                     48           166
                                                                                                     200         16%                   24%
                                                                                                                                                                          161               149
domestic league broadcast contracts, their        Swedish top-tier clubs’ combined revenues                                                           87                           34                        132
                                                                                                                 144             61                                                21%      62
scale pales in significance compared to           grew by 11% as Malmö competed in the UEFA                      30%
                                                                                                                                 30%
                                                                                                                                                     53%
                                                                                                                                                                           78               41%               55
                                                                                                     100                                                                   49%                      31        42%
Europe’s ‘big five’ leagues. Each of the top      Champions League group stages for a second                                     79
                                                                                                                                        15
                                                                                                                                               39                                  23               21%       58     19
                                                                                                                                 39%         23%                   26                       56
six clubs in our Deloitte Football Money          successive year in 2015/16. IFK Norrkoping’s                                          7%                   40    16%
                                                                                                                                                                                   14%                        44%    14%
                                                                                                                                                             24%                            38%
League earned more in revenue than any            title triumph in the 2015 Allsvenskan gave them      0     Netherlands      Denmark               Sweden               Austria         Scotland           Poland
of the six leagues featured here.                 the opportunity to close the revenue gap to
                                                                                                               Average revenue per club (€m)
                                                  Malmö through participation in the 2016/17
                                                                                                                 27              14                   10                   16               12                8
                                                  UEFA Champions League, but they were
Netherlands                                       defeated by Norway’s Rosenborg in the second                 Wages/revenue ratio

An almost 50% increase in UEFA distributions      qualifying round.                                             58%              56%                 46%                  66%              67%               59%
to Eredivisie clubs aided total revenue growth                                                                 Number of clubs
of €41m in the Dutch top league, as PSV                                                                          18              14                   16                   10               12                16
Eindhoven reached the knockout stages of          Austria
the UEFA Champions League. Despite no             The success of Rapid Vienna, who reached
Dutch cubs reaching the knockout stages of        the round of 32 in the 2015/16 UEFA Europa         of total revenues as they won the league for a                                          Matchday
the 2016/17 UEFA Champions League, Ajax’s         League, was a prime example of the boost           fifth consecutive season, and their participation
impressive run to the final of the UEFA Europa    such a performance can provide to a domestic       in the 2016/17 UEFA Champions League group                                              Broadcasting
League should mitigate any revenue loss.          league’s financial performance. Aggregate          stages will result in a substantial uplift in
                                                  revenues across the ten Austrian Bundesliga        revenue being reported in next year’s Annual                                            Sponsorship/Commercial
                                                  clubs increased by 25% (€32m), with €5m of this    Review of Football FInance.
Denmark                                           coming from UEFA distributions alone, helping                                                                                              Other commercial
The financial results for the Danish Superliga    reduce the division’s wages to revenue ratio by    Poland
                                                                                                                                                                                         Notes: This chart includes a sample
relate to the year to December 2016, and          12 percentage points from 2014/15.                 Another demonstration of the importance                                             of countries ranking below fifth in
include the impact of a change in the                                                                of UEFA competition revenue is seen in the                                          terms of average club revenues.
competition’s structure at the beginning of the                                                      Ekstraklasa, featured in our review for the first                                   Figures in respect of clubs in
                                                                                                                                                                                         Sweden relate to year to December
2016/17 season. The league’s new 14-team          Scotland                                           time. Legia Warsaw’s participation in the group
                                                                                                                                                                                         2015. Figures in respect of clubs in
format, with an end-of-season playoff system,     Despite Celtic’s failure to qualify for the UEFA   stages of the 2016/17 UEFA Champions League,                                        Denmark and Poland relate to the
has been positively received by sponsors,         Champions League group stages for the second       having competed in the UEFA Europa League                                           year to December 2016.
broadcasters and supporters, and has helped       consecutive season, Scottish Premiership           in 2015/16, helped Ekstraklasa clubs increase
                                                                                                                                                                                         Source: Leagues; Club accounts;
Danish clubs deliver increases of 50% and         clubs’ aggregate revenues grew 10% (€14m), to      their combined revenues by 12% in the year to
                                                                                                                                                                                         Deloitte analysis.
67% in matchday and broadcast revenues            €149m. Celtic continued to generate over 50%       December 2016.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           13
Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                        Sports Business Group

Deloitte Football Intelligence Tool

The Annual Review of Football Finance continues to be recognised
                                                                                                                                  01

                                                                                                             League wide trends
                                                                                                                   and analysis
as a definitive independent source of financial information in
                                                                                                                                  Big five European
respect of European football. Reflecting both this and a greater                                                                  leagues plotted on
industry appetite for financial information than ever before,                                                                     map, with users

Deloitte have developed the Football Intelligence Tool (FIT).
                                                                                                                                  able to select one
                                                                                                                                  or more by clicking
                                                                                                                                  on them.
                                                                                                                                                        02
                                                                                                                                                        Users can plot the
                                                                                                                                                        charts based on
This digital solution allows the user to                This subscription service is ideal for:                                                         a range of league
manipulate data in a quick and easy to use                                                                                                              level metrics, such
format.                                                 •• Football club executives looking to                                                          as revenue, wage
                                                           understand their organisation’s performance                                                  costs and average
Deloitte FIT uses leading user-friendly                    and position within the market and to                                                        attendance.
technology to display many of the data points              benchmark against other clubs;
contained in the Annual Review of Football
Finance Databook and a host of other industry           •• Aspiring club investors looking to identify and
information. We hope FIT will be a valuable                assess a club; and
asset for anyone looking to deepen their
understanding of the football business.                 •• Sports media and broadcasters looking for
                                                           further insight and analysis.

                                                        If you would like to find out more about the
                                                        tool and to book your free, personalised

                                                                                                                                                                 03

                                                                                                                                                                                      Club trends and
                                                        demonstration, please contact
                                                        sportsteamuk@deloitte.co.uk
                                                                                                                                                                 Revenue splits for
                                                                                                                                                                 each league set
                                                                                                                                                                 out and shown

                                                                                                                                                                                      analysis
                                                                                                                                                                 over time.

14
Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                                                                                                                                                                      Sports Business Group

   05                                                                                                                                         10

                                                                                                                             Club profiling
   Matrix analysis                                                                                                                            Explore the local
   on a club-by-club                                                                                                                          area of a given club,
   basis with the axes
   defined by user
                                                                                                                                              with population data
                                                                                                                                              displaying the socio-                  11
   selected metrics.
   Peer group averages
   and correlation lines
                              06
                              Overall revenue
                                                                                                                                              economic profile of
                                                                                                                                              the catchment area.
                                                                                                                                                                                     Historical details
                                                                                                                                                                                     of key financial
                                                                                                                                                                                     measures and
   also plotted.              trend for given
                              selection of clubs,
                              with ability to click
                                                                                     08
                                                                                     Users can see where their
                                                                                                                                                                                     supporting matrix
                                                                                                                                                                                     analysis for two
                                                                                                                                                                                     parameters
                              through to further                                     highlighted club is relative                                                                    simultaneously.
                              explore historic                                       to their own user selected
                              revenue trends.                                        peer group.

04                                                                                                   09
                                                                                                     Users can create their
An interactive map of
Europe allows the user to
quickly select the clubs
                                                           07
                                                           Users can configure
                                                                                                     own peer groups by
                                                                                                     filtering by a variety of
                                                                                                     possible metrics such as
                                         Individual club
                                         benchmarking

most appropriate to their                                  the screen by selecting                   stadium size, whether
specific geography and                                     any metric they wish                      a club has played in
circumstances, with FIT                                    to explore, setting up                    European competitions,
currently containing data                                  the overall dashboard                     their average attendance
for the ‘big five’ European                                to reflect their areas                    or their league position.
leagues and the EFL                                        of interest, providing
Championship.                                              visual analysis of
                                                           specific clubs.

                                                                                                                                                                                                          15
Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                        Sports Business Group

Premier League clubs

Premier League clubs’ revenues grew by                                                                Matchday revenue is at its lowest level (17%)           League clubs to expand capacities and hence
9% to a record £3.6 billion in 2015/16. In                  Impact of individual                      as a proportion of total revenue in the history         supply to meet demand amid consistently full or
the final year of the Premier League’s                                                                of the Premier League, but in absolute terms            near full stadia.
broadcast cycle, the 20 Premier League
                                                            clubs                                     (£622m) is at a record high. We expect further
clubs generated more on average (£182m)                     Of the 17 clubs that were in the          growth given the continuing work by Premier             Commercial revenues grew by 10% to exceed
than all 22 top division clubs combined did                 Premier League in both 2014/15 and                                                                £1 billion for the first time in the league’s history,
in 1991/92 (£170m), the last season before                  2015/16, the club which had the largest                                                           driven by new commercial deals at several
the competition began.                                      revenue, Manchester United, was also      Chart 7: Premier League clubs’ revenues                 leading Premier League clubs.
                                                            the fastest growing in 2015/16.           2013/14-2017/18 (£m)
                                                            Revenue growth of £120m (30%) was
                                                                                                      6,000
Premier League clubs’ revenues                              principally due to their reported £75m                                          Projected
Over half of the £289m increase in Premier                  per year kit deal with adidas, and a                                                                  Future revenue growth
League clubs’ revenues year-on-year was due                 return to Champions League football,      5,000                               4,460   4,550
to broadcast income, predominantly as a result              which generated UEFA distributions of                                                 1,170           The 2016/17 season was the first of a
                                                                                                                                          1,120    26%
of UEFA distributions to Premier League clubs               over £30m.                                                         3,639
                                                                                                                                           25%                    new Premier League broadcast rights
                                                                                                      4,000
increasing (by £100m). This in turn was driven in                                                              3,259   3,350                                      cycle, with total Premier League central
                                                                                                                               1,090
part by English clubs’ improved performance in              Manchester City generated the largest              897      987     30%       2,700   2,710           distributions increasing by 46% to
                                                                                                                        29%                61%     59%
UEFA competitions in the 2015/16 season, with               revenue increase (£40m) among the         3,000     27%                                               £2.4 billion in 2016/17, an average
Manchester City reaching the semi-finals of the             other 16 clubs. Their run to the                   1,758   1,780
                                                                                                                               1,927                              increase of £38m per Premier League
                                                                                                                                53%
UEFA Champions League, and Liverpool the final              Champions League semi-finals earned       2,000     54%     53%                                       club. This growth will be enhanced and
of the UEFA Europa League, and it also being                them £63m in UEFA distributions, the                                                                  supported by new commercial
the first season of a new, more lucrative, UEFA             highest club distribution made by UEFA                                                                agreements such as Chelsea’s with
                                                                                                      1,000
broadcast rights cycle.                                     in 2015/16. Leicester City also                                               640     670
                                                                                                                                                                  Nike, and likely matchday revenue
                                                                                                               604      583    622
                                                            generated an absolute revenue                       19%     18%     17%        14%     15%            uplifts arising from West Ham United’s
The average revenue of a Premier League club                increase of £25m, and the second             0    13/14    14/15   15/16    16/17     17/18           move to the London Stadium in
was £182m in 2015/16, which is more than all 22             highest relative increase of the 17                Average revenue per club                           2016/17, Liverpool’s expansion of their
top division clubs generated in total in 1991/92,           clubs, almost exclusively driven by                163      168    182        223     228             main stand, and Tottenham Hotspur’s
the last year of the ’old’ Division One. Broadcast          extra Premier League central                                                                          planned one-year residency at
revenue has almost doubled since 2008/09, and               distributions of £22m in their               Commercial                    Matchday                   Wembley in 2017/18. As a result, we
in 2016/17 we expect it will make up over 60%               title-winning season. Five clubs saw                                                                  expect total Premier League clubs’
of total revenue, reflecting the growing global             their revenue fall.                          Broadcasting            Source: Deloitte analysis.       revenues to rise to £4.5 billion in
demand for Premier League football.                                                                                                                               2016/17, and £4.6 billion in 2017/18.

16
Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                                                                                                                                                                                         Premier League clubs

Although the Premier League has the most                                                                 Chart 8: Premier League and Championship clubs’ average revenues – 2015/16 (£m)
equal distribution mechanism of broadcast                Parachute payments
                                                                                                          500
revenue in any of Europe’s ‘big five’ leagues,
there are significant differences between
                                                         for relegated clubs                                                  398
clubs in terms of matchday and commercial                The average revenue of Championship              400                 170
revenue. Qualifying for European club                    clubs in receipt of parachute payments
competitions also brings a significant                   was almost double that of those without
                                                                                                          300                              256
revenue advantage, especially in the                     in 2015/16, and the average parachute
                                                                                                                                    10      89
context of improved UEFA broadcast deals,                payment of £18m exceeded the total                                   46
which resulted in total UEFA distributions               average revenue of non-parachute clubs.          200
                                                                                                                                                     8
                                                                                                                              91            22
to participating English clubs of £230m in                                                                                                  88
                                                                                                                                                                110                110
                                                                                                                                                          15                  23
the 2015/16 season.                                      The new Premier League broadcast cycle,          100                                                            7               5        33
                                                                                                                                                                                                                       17
                                                                                                                              81                                 74                64         6        4
                                                         commencing in 2016/17, has increased                                               49                                                             5   2
                                                                                                                                                                                                                 3 6
                                                                                                                                                                                                                    6
                                                         year one parachute payments to                                                                                  14              18 18
                                                                                                             0           UCL clubs       UEL clubs             Premier           Premier    Championship Championship
Premier League clubs’ revenue levels                     relegated clubs to over £40m each, a 58%                                                              League            League          with       without
The average revenues of Premier League clubs             increase year-on-year. However, with                                                                  (other)         (relegated)    parachute    parachute
competing in the Champions League were                   parachute payments now lasting for only
almost £400m in 2015/16. This was mainly                 three years rather than four, and clubs             Commercial
due to the return of Manchester United to                making an immediate return to the                                                               Spending for success
Champions League football and the impact of              Championship only receiving the first two           Broadcast other
the new UEFA broadcast rights cycle, which               years’ worth, it remains to be seen                                                             After some disappointing domestic
resulted in a significant increase in distributions      whether this will significantly alter the           Broadcast UEFA                              campaigns in 2015/16, the Premier
to clubs. The six clubs who qualified for the            competitive balance of the Championship.                                                        League’s big six clubs outspent the rest
group stages of UEFA competitions accounted                                                                  Broadcast PL central                        of the division in the summer 2016
for almost 80% of Premier League clubs’ total                                                                                                            transfer window, and re-established
commercial revenue in 2015/16, demonstrating          revenue of the average non-big six club, Chelsea       Matchday                                    their on-pitch supremacy, finishing as
the enduring commercial appeal of continental         finished tenth, and Liverpool finished eighth                                                      the top six in 2016/17 for the second
football to sponsors.                                 despite revenue of over £300m, more than           Note: UCL clubs comprised                       time in three seasons. They will all
                                                      double that of sixth-placed Southampton, or        Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester                    compete in UEFA competitions in
The revenue primacy of these six clubs                seventh placed West Ham United.                    City and Manchester United. UEL                 2017/18, with five English clubs in the
(Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester                                                                 clubs comprised Liverpool and                   Champions League following
City, Manchester United and Tottenham                 The three relegated clubs in 2015/16 averaged      Tottenham Hotspur.                              Manchester United’s Europa League
Hotspur), which was further accentuated by            £110m in revenue, 58% of which was Premier                                                         success. Although it is difficult to see any
their presence in European competition, was           League broadcast revenue. In the 2016/17           Source: Premier League; UEFA;                   club mounting a sustained challenge to
overcome on the pitch in the 2015/16 season by        season the three clubs relegated from the          Deloitte analysis.                              the financial pre-eminence of these
Leicester City. The Foxes won the league despite      Premier League received an average of £96.5m                                                       clubs in the short term, Leicester’s
generating revenues of less than 40% of the           in central distributions alone, highlighting                                                       remarkable triumph in 2015/16
average of the big six, and less than one third       the impact of the new broadcast rights                                                             demonstrated the continuing truth in
of the four Champions League clubs’ average.          agreement, and the huge incentive on offer for                                                     the old adage that in football, money
Despite generating more than three times the          Championship clubs to gain promotion.                                                              does not always guarantee success.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                            17
Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                        Premier League clubs

Premier League clubs’ wage costs                                                                         We would expect to see another substantial
continued to grow in 2015/16, reaching                      Impact of individual
£2.3 billion, an increase of 12%. Wage costs
grew at almost twice the rate witnessed
                                                            clubs                                        increase in wages in 2016/17, with average
in each of the previous two years, as clubs
spent in anticipation of the extra revenue
                                                            The 17 clubs present in both the
                                                            2014/15 and 2015/16 Premier League
                                                                                                         broadcast rights distribution per club
from the new broadcast cycle commencing
in 2016/17.
                                                            seasons increased wage costs by an
                                                            average of £13m each. Liverpool
                                                                                                         increasing by around £38m.
                                                            (£42m) and Manchester United (£37m)
                                                            had the largest increases, although          Chart 9: Premier League clubs’ revenues and wage costs
Premier League clubs’ wage costs                            these include the effects of managerial      – 2014/15-2015/16 (£m)
For the eighth time in the last ten years, wage             redundancy payments. As a result,
                                                                                                         5,000
costs grew at a faster rate than revenues in                Manchester United replaced Chelsea                                                           Revenue
2015/16. As a result, the division’s wages/                 as the division’s highest wage payers.
revenue ratio increased for the second                      These two clubs, along with Arsenal,         4,000                     3,639                 Wage costs
                                                                                                                   3,350
successive year to 63%. The introduction                    Manchester City and Liverpool, were
of the Premier League’s Short Term Cost                     the only clubs to pay higher than the                                                        Wages/revenue ratio
                                                                                                         3,000
Control measures in 2013/14, coupled with the               average league wage costs. Tottenham
substantial uplift in broadcast rights values, has          Hotspur were the only Premier League                                    2,279                Average wage costs
resulted in the ratio falling by eight percentage           club to reduce their wage bill               2,000     2,031                                 per club
points from the all-time high of 71% in 2012/13.            year-on-year, yet managed to improve
Since 2012/13, just 44% of revenue increases                their league position from fifth to third.   1,000
have been consumed by wage growth, whereas                                                                                                           Source: Deloitte analysis.
in the five years to 2012/13, this figure was 99%.          Leicester City had the largest increase
                                                                                                            0     2014/15         2015/16
                                                            in relative terms (40%), aside from the
Although increased financial regulation has                 promoted clubs. This increase is                        61%             63%
undoubtedly helped limit clubs’ wage spend                  attributable in part to player and                      102             114
relative to their revenues, we would expect                 coaching staff bonuses as a result of
to see another substantial increase in wages                them winning the 2015/16 Premier

                                                                                                                                                        £1.6 billion
in 2016/17, with average Premier League                     League.
broadcast rights distributions per club
increasing by around £38m.
                                                                                                                                                             Contributed by English
                                                                                                                                                              professional football
                                                                                                                                                               to Government in
                                                                                                                                                                taxes in 2015/16

18
Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            Premier League clubs

Seven Premier League clubs had a wages/               Chart 10: Premier League clubs’ revenues and wage costs – 2015/16 (£m)
revenue ratio in excess of 70%, the
                                                      600
indicative warning threshold level used
by UEFA as part of their Financial Fair Play                    515

Regulations. This is an increase from six             500

                                                                                                                         Tottenham Hotspur
clubs in 2014/15, and two in 2013/14, as
                                                                           393

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               West Bromwich Albion
clubs spent in anticipation of increased

                                                                                                                                                       West Ham United
                                                      400                                350

                                                                                                                                                                                          Newcastle United
broadcast revenue in 2016/17 and beyond.                                                           335

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              AFC Bournemouth
                                                                                                             302

                                                                                                                                             Average

                                                                                                                                                                         Leicester City

                                                                                                                                                                                                             Southampton
Notably, Aston Villa recorded the league’s

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Crystal Palace

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Swansea City
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      Norwich City
                                                      300

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Sunderland
highest wages/revenue ratio in 2015/16

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Aston Villa

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                Stoke City
                                                                                                                                                                                                                           Everton
(88%), and the eighth highest wage total                                                                                 209

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    Watford
                                                                241                                232                                       182
(£93m), but finished in 20th position and             200                  198           195
                                                                                                             209
                                                                                                                                                       144
were relegated.                                                                                                                                                          129              126                124           122
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     108          106           104           101              98                     98             96             91        88

                                                                                                             Liverpool
                                                                           Man City
                                                                 Man Utd
                                                                                                                                             114

                                                                                                   Chelsea
                                                                                                                         105

                                                                                         Arsenal
                                                      100                                                                                                                                                                  95                     93
                                                                                                                                                       85                80               75                 85                      84                         82            81                                                     82
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               74                     67                            58        60
Correlation between wage costs and
league position                                         0       47%        50%          56%        69%       69%         50%                 63%       59%               62%              59%                68%           78%       78%          88%           79%           80%              75%                    69%            85%            64%       68%
The Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient,
which measures the relationship between
league position and total wage cost rank, was               Revenue                   Wage costs                   Wages/revenue ratio                                                    Source: Deloitte analysis.
0.54 in 2015/16, with only four clubs finishing
within one place either side of where one would
expect given their wage bill. This was down from      Indeed, had Leicester City not won the league                                               Leicester City, who
0.74 (and ten clubs) in the previous season, and      and incurred bonuses as a result, their wage                                                                                                                                                                           Future wages trends
is the lowest level of correlation we have ever
seen in our analysis of Premier League finances.
                                                      costs would have been even lower, which makes
                                                      their achievement even more remarkable.
                                                                                                                                                  ranked 15th in wage                                                                                                        The agreement by Premier League clubs

The remarkable success of Leicester City, who         Two of the three promoted clubs, AFC
                                                                                                                                                  costs, outperformed                                                                                                        to continue the Short Term Cost Control
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Rules, albeit under a slightly revised
ranked 15th in wage costs, outperforming
their wage spending to an extent never before
                                                      Bournemouth and Watford, successfully avoided
                                                      relegation despite recording the lowest wage
                                                                                                                                                  their wage spending to                                                                                                     format, will continue to help restrict
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             wage inflation and should, together with
achieved in Premier League history, and
the relative on-pitch struggles of defending
                                                      costs in the division. This illustrates that there
                                                      are other factors beyond wage spend which
                                                                                                                                                  an extent never before                                                                                                     the broadcast revenue growth, lead to a
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             reduction in the wages/revenue ratio in
champions Chelsea heavily contributed to
this figure, with the latter finishing tenth, eight
                                                      contribute to clubs’ on-pitch performance.                                                  achieved in Premier                                                                                                        2016/17. The 2016/17 results will also
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             restore a much stronger correlation
places lower than their wage costs rank of
second. Relegated Aston Villa also finished
                                                                                                                                                  League history.                                                                                                            between wage costs and league
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             position. The division’s top six wage
twelve places lower than their wage costs rank                                                                                                                                                                                                                               spenders in 2015/16 were also its top six
of eighth, further contributing to the low level of                                                                                                                                                                                                                          spenders on transfers in the summer
correlation in 2015/16.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      2016 window, and filled the top six
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             league positions in 2016/17.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                19
Annual Review of Football Finance 2017 |
                                        Premier League clubs

Premier League clubs recorded a third                                                                     Chart 11: Premier League clubs’ profitability – 2011/12-2015/16 (£m)
consecutive season of operating profits                     Premier League clubs’
                                                                                                          1,000
in excess of £500m in 2015/16. However,
due to the impact of exceptional, one-off
                                                            pre-tax profits                                                                                        19

accounting adjustments, the division                        At pre-tax level, which includes the            800                                                                        17              17
                                                                                                                                                                   31
returned to cumulative pre-tax losses                       impact of player trading and finance                                                                   618                 27              26
following two consecutive seasons of                        costs, Premier League clubs returned                                                                                      549
                                                                                                            600                                                                                       511
pre-tax profits. We expect a return to                      to collective losses (of £111m) after two
record-breaking profits in 2016/17, with the                years of pre-tax profitability. However,                                                               14
                                                                                                            400         11                      13                                     14
possibility that it may be the first season’s               this result is attributable to one-off                                                                  9
results to show every Premier League club                   accounting adjustments at Chelsea                            4                       4                 187                 6
generating an operating profit.                             (£67m in relation to a compensation fee         200         84                      82                                    112              12
                                                            arising from the early termination of the                                                                                                  (6)
                                                            club’s kit sponsorship deal with adidas),
                                                                                                              0      2011/12                  2012/13            2013/14            2014/15          2015/16
Premier League clubs’ operating profits                     and Aston Villa (£45m in relation to the
                                                                                                                                                 7
Premier League clubs generated combined                     impairment of tangible assets following                                                                                                   (111)
operating profits (which excludes items such                relegation). Excluding these two items,        -200                                 (16)
                                                                                                                       (246)
as player trading and finance costs) of £511m.              Premier League clubs would have been                                               (316)
Despite falling for the second successive year,             very narrowly collectively profitable in                     8
                                                                                                           -400
this is still the third highest aggregate operating         2015/16, albeit significantly less so than                  (12)
profit ever recorded by Premier League clubs.               in 2013/14 and 2014/15. 12 clubs
Over the three year broadcast rights cycle                  recorded pre-tax profits in 2015/16, the          Operating profit/(loss)
from 2013/14 to 2015/16, Premier League clubs               largest of which was recorded by                                                            Future outlook
generated combined operating profits of over                Manchester United (£49m).                         Profit/(loss) before tax
£1.6 billion; more than they managed in total                                                                                                           The return to pre-tax losses in 2015/16
over the previous 16 seasons.                                                                                 Number of clubs generating                is likely to be a one-off for the
                                                                                                              operating profit/pre-tax                  foreseeable future, driven by
Of the 17 consistent clubs year-on-year, ten            operating loss (Aston Villa and Swansea City)         profit                                    exceptional costs. With central
suffered a reduction in operating profitability         had the two highest wages/revenue ratios in the                                                 distributions to Premier League clubs
in 2015/16. However, as was the case in the             Premier League (88% and 85% respectively).            Average club operating                    in 2016/17 £760m (46%) higher than in
previous year, 17 clubs recorded an operating                                                                 result/pre-tax result                     2015/16, increasing matchday and
profit. Manchester United (£173m) and                                                                                                                   commercial revenues and Premier
Manchester City (£97m) together accounted for           Despite falling for the second                    Note: The operating result is the
                                                                                                          net of revenues less wage costs               League clubs generating net transfer
over 50% of Premier League operating profits.
                                                        successive year, this is still                    and other operating costs. The
                                                                                                          operating result excludes player
                                                                                                                                                        receipts for the first time ever in a
The three promoted clubs generated combined                                                                                                             transfer window in January 2017, we
operating profits of £28m, a year after recording       the third highest aggregate                       trading and certain exceptional
                                                                                                          items, which are included in the
                                                                                                                                                        fully expect that Premier League clubs
a combined operating loss of £47m in the
                                                        operating profit ever recorded                    pre-tax result, along with other              will collectively achieve record levels of
Championship. This starkly illustrates the                                                                costs such as financing costs.                profitability in the seasons to come.
difference in profitability between the two             by Premier League clubs.
                                                                                                          Source: Deloitte analysis.
divisions. Two of the three clubs to record an

20
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