Celtic’s preliminary accounts showed that they have drifted into the red, but part of the problem relates to the change of the managerial team. Tony Mowbray is believed to be still drawing a salary, and there are £3.4m in ‘exceptional expenses’ in unidentified costs.
Celtic’s preliminary accounts showed that they have drifted into the red, but part of the problem relates to the change of the managerial team. Tony Mowbray is believed to be still drawing a salary, and there are £3.4m in ‘exceptional expenses’ in unidentified costs.
A £2m profit for 2008-9 becomes a loss of £2.13m before taxation. Trading profit was down from £11.23m to £4.46m, but it remains a surplus. Turnover decreased by 15 per cent to £61.72m and year-end debt increased from £1.51m to £5.85m, a burden that the club regards as sustainable. A poor season on the pitch did not help, there was reduced merchandising revenue from one kit launch rather than two and the demise of Setanta Sports affected domestic media revenue.
Last year’s season ticket sales declined from 54,252 to around 48,000 and the club thinks this is largely a recessionary effect. The club expects this downward trend to continue. Quite a lot of fans travel a long distance to support the club and it is thought that the size of the Irish contingent in particular declined.
The labour costs to turnover ratio increased from 53.4 per cent to 59.11 per cent, just inside the 60 per cent danger line, but this was a reflection of the decline in turnover rather than any splurge on wages which amounted to some £13m last year. The club did manage to trim operating expenses by 6.7 pr cent to £57.2m. However, the affluence of the English Premier League is an inflationary factor pushing up wages levels. The club also think that the new Champions League access arrangements have been a negative factor for clubs from mid-ranking nations such as Scotland.
On the plus side, Celtic extended its kit deal with Nike to 2015 and agreed a three-year shirt sponsorship deal with Tennant’s beers. Rangers’ debt is five times higher, although the differential is thought to have eased somewhat over the summer.