Premier League clubs paid out £150m in interest charges last year. Manchester United paid out £41.9m.
Premier League clubs paid out £150m in interest charges last year. Manchester United paid out £41.9m. but Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester City (£14.5m) and Portsmouth also paid out significant sums. One encouraging sign is that the size of the debt mountain shrank from £3.1bn to £1.92bn, largely due to the conversion of debt into equity by the owners of Chelsea and Manchester City. However, Arsenal and Liverpool have each paid off £100m of their debts since the summer of 2008.
One has to remember that most businesses function through debt and the crucial question is always whether it can be serviced, although one might add the caveat, particularly important in the case of football clubs, that it is not just a question of meeting the payments but also ensuring that one does not damage the core business.