Bolton Wanderers have revealed the chilling cost of Premiership football- a loss of £50.7m taking overall debt to an eye watering £163.8m!
The glory days under Sam Allerdyce which saw the club enjoy 11 years in the Premiership- bankrolled by Sky Sports- are well and truly over as they return to the real world under Dougie Freeman.
While Celtic look on enviously at the money being generated in the English top flight the reality is that the Sky riches is merely feeding a debt addiction that is bound to lead to more and more clubs doing a Portsmouth.
Provincial clubs like Bolton, Wigan Athletic, QPR, Blackburn Rovers, Sheffield Wednesday and Charlton have all had their time in the limelight but when relegation beckons and the sugar daddy loses interest the very existence of the club is at stake.
Even traditionally bigger clubs like Leeds United, Nottingham Forest and Derby County find themselves on the outside looking in as a small elite group of clubs hoover up more and more commercial income while others spend way outwith their means in a bid to survive on the gravy train.
£151.3m of Bolton’s debt is owed to Eddie Davies who owns MIL with the interest on that loan/debt frozen at 0% in July of this year.
Commenting on the accounts Bolton chairman Phil Gartside said: “It should go without saying that Eddie Davies continues to provide a humbling level of support to the club. However, the financial support given by owners is no longer possible in this league without severe penalty.
As well as a dramatic drop in television money the knock on effect of relegation has seen income sources slashed throughout the entire club.
Attendances have dropped by 24% reducing ticket income from £5.7m down to £3.8 in a twelve month period while sponsorship and advertising deals crashed from £4.3m down to £1.4m.
QPR are expected to post the highest ever losses for a football club after being relegated with the sixth highest wage bill in the Premiership.
For the 2011/12 season in which they survived in the Premiership the London side lost £22.6m before significantly increasing their wage AND getting relegated last season.
The sooner the EPL bubble busts the better, i have absolutely no sympathy for any of these clubs that are heavily in debt and if they go to the wall then good, they have had millions and millions of ££s thrown at them just for avoiding relegation from the EPL, all of these teams, Bolton, QPR, blackburn, Wigan ect are absolutely DIDDY clubs compared to Celtic, do they actually think that if they spend money like they have they might win the EPL or compete in the CL.
Let’s face it if Manchester City, Chelsea didn’t have a sugar daddy bankrolling them for hundreds of millions then they would be an average mid-table maybe the odd cup win type of club with a small mediocre size support… Hail Hail, KTF+
Well said m8
I totally agree with your sentiments KEIGHLEY BHOY. The EPL clubs have been allowed to operate on the back of SKY TV and ‘sugar daddies’ and the whole thing will inevitably collapse leaving massive debts. The tribute club up here have not learned either and are heading inexorably towards chaos again. Meanwhile, we are able to look forward and build for the future on solid foundations. I am looking forward to tomorrows clash of glasgow’s BIG TWO at Celtic Park.
I find it staggering that more English clubs haven’t gone the way of Sevco….and died.
It is a nonsense the way they are allowed to operate….and I know the Fair Play Financial rules are coming in….but that will just lead to Armageddon…( Where have I heard that before?)……:0)….
For too long the authorities in England have followed their Brothers in Scotland…..and turned a blind eye….although up here, only one club benefits from it….
Hell mend them…They had their chances…and blew it….
Move over somebody and let the Sellik in….
Agree Mick,no sympathy.
Celtic in the EPL should be our dream.
Our worldwide support would take us to
another level.
The Irish supporters would drop their EPL
teams and follow the bhoys.
The EPL will eventually fail because of greed as more and more of these poor minnows, collapse .We should be careful about the EPL ,eventually the place to be will be a European league where really well managed and well supported teams with an international appeal will play.The others will play in local leagues nationally.
Well said Edward and I must agree. Your comments are measured and well thought out. The EPL is a mess and is NOT the answer.
Can’t wait till it all goes PHFFIRRRRT.
And it will. The Bundesliga saw it coming for them years ago and adjusted the finance for their clubs and fans, the outcome a fantastic product, great match day experiences
And better quality at all levels.
The sevco spivs are second div compared to some EPL clubs and like sevco they deserve allbthe hurt that’s surely coming to them.
hail hail
Each season brings the inevitable that bit closer, now with the imminent amalgamation of the Russia / Ukrainian leagues the long awaited European league is even closer.
How clubs like Bolton, QPR etc can get into such a mess despite being bankrolled by SKY is testimony to the stupidity of those running the clubs. FFP might be a hurdle for many clubs, but I am sure the creative accountants will simply find another way of moving debts / investments around – Most certainly UEFA will not consider clubs such as PSG, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Man Utd, Man. City or Chelsea etc to be “badly run” as therefore banned from Euro competition no matter the actual losses.
I’m all for ALL clubs operating within their own limits, much stricter controls ala Germany but I doubt the SFA / SPFL will step up to the mark and push for similar constraints despite the obvious lessons to be learned from Germany. Celtic should continue to ensure our own house is in order, ensuring we give our youth players the best opportunities to make the step up (Clubs like Real Madrid operate 3 teams at league levels). The loan system is all well and good but we have little / no control over the development of players loaned out, different systems etc. We need to think much bigger, further forward than simply putting our 17s at 19s…push them more, then get them into the first team much quicker than 21-22 or older !