| Blackpool FC financial accounts released for 2018/19 01:39 - Jul 10 with 201 views | BringBackTheRedRoom |
Accounts just released by Blackpool FC show the club made a loss of £2.1m during the 2018/19 League One season.
This figure, which covers the period of transition from the end of the Oyston ownership to the receivers, interim board and the first few weeks of Simon Sadler’s reign, is up from £1.4m the previous year.
The report, which covers the financial year up to June 30, 2019, also shows the club’s turnover rose from £3.3m in 2018 to £4.6m in 2019.
The club had year-end cash and bank balances of £199,000, down from £369,000 in 2018.
Given the fan boycott ended in March 2019, it is no surprise to see gate receipts in 2019 increased from £376,000 the previous year to £1.4m.
However, turnover from season ticket sales declined from £267,000 to £206,000, although bar and food sales increased from £472,000 in 2018 to £502,000 in 2019.
Wages and salaries, meanwhile, went up by £440,000 to £4.44m.
The club made a profit of £219,000 on player transfers, down from £1.8m the previous year when the club sold Bright Osayi-Samuel and Brad Potts.
Spend on youth development increased from £411,000 to £485,000.
The report states: “The club has been run against a backdrop of shareholder dispute which has impacted on day-to-day management and resulted in a fan boycott with attendant impact on gate receipts and related sales.
“Prior to the year end, the club was sold and the fan boycott ended and the directors anticipate that this will mitigate the risks associated with these factors.”
The report also discusses the financial impact the coronavirus pandemic is likely to have on the football club.
“In common with virtually every other business in the country, the company has been experiencing the effects of the coronavirus pandemic,” it states.
“Whilst the full impact of this exceptional situation on the company cannot be assessed with complete certainty at the current time, the directors believe they have taken all possible steps to protect the company.
“The company has furloughed a number of staff to mitigate costs but are planning on these returning within a relatively short timescale as the directors anticipate that activity will continue to gradually increase.
“Future projections have been prepared to June 2021 to include an assessment over the pandemic, which at the time of this report means that, due to lockdown, the club is unable to have any fans in attendance at the stadium for matches and it is currently unknown how long this will be enforced for.
“Due to this, the forecasts confirm that the company is expected to record losses and incur further significant cash outflows and accordingly the directors acknowledge that this indicates a material uncertainty over the company’s ability to continue as a going concern and that steps require to be taken to address this.”
However, the report goes on to state the directors have a “reasonable expectation” that the company will have sufficient resources to continue its operational existence for the foreseeable future.
A loan owed by former parent company Blackpool Football Club (Properties) Limited was written off to the value of £30m.
Former chairman Karl Oyston owes £161,000, in which “full provision” has been made.
https://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/sport/football/blackpool-fc/blackpool-fc-fina | |
| ‘Where there is harmony, may we bring discord. Where there is truth, may we bring error. Where there is faith, may we bring doubt. And where there is hope, may we bring despair’ |
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| Blackpool FC financial accounts released for 2018/19 on 10:05 - Jul 10 with 191 views | BringBackTheRedRoom |
Football finance expert delivers his verdict on Blackpool FC's latest accounts
Blackpool FC would have been in a good position financially to make progress again had it not been for the coronavirus pandemic.
That’s according to leading football finance expert Kieran Maguire, who has picked apart the club’s latest accounts made up to June 30, 2019.
The period covers the transition from the Oyston ownership to the arrival of the receivers and even the first few weeks of Simon Sadler’s reign.
The headline figure is an overall loss of £2.1m, up from £1.4m the previous year.
The club spent £101 in wages for every £100 of income while the club had cash of £199,000 at the end of the 2018/19 season, down from £369,000.
Gate receipts, however, grew by an impressive 371 per cent thanks to the boycott ending in March 2019 as well as the two cup games against Arsenal.
The accounts also mention how the club had to write off £30m the previous year relating to money owed by the former parent company controlled by Owen Oyston.
A £161,000 loan to former chairman Karl Oyston is also being pursued by the club, although it’s doubtful whether this will ever be repaid.
Maguire, the man behind the Price of Football Twitter account, admits these accounts are tricky to analyse given the “hangover” from the Oyston regime.
He told The Gazette: “Some clubs are breaking even in League One, but it’s a tough league because there’s a lot of clubs looking to get into the Championship and are spending accordingly.
“There’s a big step-up between League One and the Championship in terms of TV money. You go from about £1.5m to £7m, so a few clubs gamble to a certain extent.
“I think in this instance for Blackpool, there’s the hangover to take into account from the Oyston days during the 2018/19 season which would have impacted upon their income.
“It’s quite a difficult year of accounts to analyse really because of the change at boardroom level but I’m hopeful things will improve.
“Had it not been for Covid, things would have been better this season because the goodwill towards the new owner would have been reflected in higher revenues.
“The wage bill exceeding income is always a cause for concern, but I think we can mitigate that to a certain extent because income was down two-thirds of the year when the club was under the control of the Oystons.
“The fans’ campaign was designed to make things awkward for them and that’s exactly what it did.
“While the results weren’t great last year, there were mitigating factors - the main one being fans boycotting because of the Oyston regime.
“The increase in gate receipts was very much driven by the success of the fans’ protests. The supporters were very coordinated and dedicated and clearly they went through a lot of suffering as well because it’s the club they love.
“Issues of that nature should mean that going forward, and I think we have to look at this in a non-Covid world, Blackpool are in a pretty strong position with lots of goodwill from the fans to start making good progress again.”
On how the pandemic will affect clubs financially going forward, Maguire added: “Whether clubs can afford to resume playing or not, we will have to take guidance from central government.
“I don’t think the clubs in League One can probably afford to return to football unless it’s in front of a paying audience due to the nature of the TV deal. However, we have seen the German third division return so fingers crossed.
“But Germany appears to be far more organised in terms of its dealings with Covid than we’ve seen here in the UK.
“If it can return in front of crowds, I think a lot of people will want to go to matches.
“But with four million people potentially being unemployed and the tourism industry and the entertainment industry being hit hard, that will have an impact of course on a town such as Blackpool which is very service sector orientated.”
https://www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk/sport/football/blackpool-fc/football-finance- | |
| ‘Where there is harmony, may we bring discord. Where there is truth, may we bring error. Where there is faith, may we bring doubt. And where there is hope, may we bring despair’ |
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| Blackpool FC financial accounts released for 2018/19 on 12:29 - Jul 12 with 180 views | spell_chekker |
Interesting to see that the club was losing £40k p/w under the Oystons.
The losses are worrying, especially when you take into account the financial effects of the coronavirus and the extrainput of cash needed to be pumped into the club after years of neglect.
It's going to be a tough journey to get the club to a stage where it'll be more or less a viable(ish) entity. | |
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| Blackpool FC financial accounts released for 2018/19 on 13:24 - Jul 12 with 178 views | BringBackTheRedRoom |
Love to see a breakdown of the wages, £4.44 million!
I'm guessing the next set of accounts will look very ugly. [Post edited 12 Jul 2020 13:27]
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| ‘Where there is harmony, may we bring discord. Where there is truth, may we bring error. Where there is faith, may we bring doubt. And where there is hope, may we bring despair’ |
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| Blackpool FC financial accounts released for 2018/19 on 13:31 - Jul 12 with 174 views | spell_chekker |
Ridiculous that the wages alone exceed turnover. | |
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| Blackpool FC financial accounts released for 2018/19 on 13:34 - Jul 12 with 171 views | BringBackTheRedRoom |
Partly due to the boycott. Must have been a few non playing staff on that bill at a guess. | |
| ‘Where there is harmony, may we bring discord. Where there is truth, may we bring error. Where there is faith, may we bring doubt. And where there is hope, may we bring despair’ |
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