Financial sustainability is here to stay – and those who stand out should be acknowledged.
Off The Pitch crowns
@BrondbyIF
as the most financially-sustainable football club in Europe in 2021, based on a set of weighted proportional metrics.
#Br
øndby
He is finalising two deals in the next few months to increase his multi-club ownership ecosystem.
@JohnTextor
considers football clubs undervalued in general and believes he can implement a more efficient business model.
Interview by
@rodrigocapelo
The six
@premierleague
clubs that wanted to join the Super League are still to fully pay a £22 million settlement agreement and are also unlikely to have to pay their share of a €15 million settlement with
@UEFA
.
#PremierLeague
He is finalising two deals in the next few months to increase his multi-club ownership ecosystem.
@JohnTextor
considers football clubs undervalued in general and believes he can implement a more efficient business model.
Interview by
@rodrigocapelo
"It's time to rethink the way the overall football system is functioning," FIFA's head of professional football
@DesireeBellia
says in this interview on new
@FIFAcom
diploma in club management.
Interested buyers in the Brazilian market should expect a different process as clubs in the next pool are expected to demand higher multiples for their assets.
Reporter
@rodrigocapelo
has talked with Pedro Daniel, partner at EY and
@cesargrafietti
Champions League semi-finalists involved in the
#SuperLeague
are expected to be thrown out of UEFA's prime competition – as soon as Friday.
That is according to the chairman of the Danish FA, Jesper Moller, who sits on UEFA's executive committee.
#Br
øndby is suffering under a boycott from most loyal fans, fearing wrong direction under the ownership of Global Football Holdings
Nervous home games & ⬇️ performance persist. Peace talks ongoing since Dec. Glimpse of historic fan-owner agreement?
The Spanish second division side
@RealSporting
become the first European club in Mexican multi-club group.
Interview with
#RealSporting
executive president
@davguerra
.
"We see the opportunity to build something brilliant"
Analysis reveals Danish side
@AGFFodbold
as one of the best in Scandinavia when it comes to commercial income.
But why are the club not expanding internationally when they are doing so well with domestic partners?
#KSDH
🌍⚽️
@LAFC
are not just playing the game, they're changing it!
With their latest acquisition of
@gc_zuerich
, they're redefining football's global map. 14 countries, 24 clubs – the game has never been this interconnected.
#LAFC
#GC
"Things have changed dramatically" -
@Prof_Chadwick
Why are the owners of
@Inter
,
@SouthamptonFC
and
@WBA
all looking to sell?
The benefits - if you are a Chinese businessman - of owning a European football club are over.
@ChBoutrup
'Emotional intelligence is more important than ever. You need leaders who are emphatic and know how to speak to their players, staff and fan bases in such a difficult moment,' FIFA's head of professional football
@DesireeBellia
says in a candid interview.
🌍 200 km north of the Arctic Circle lies a football miracle.
@Glimt
, once known for cod and auroras, now dazzles Europe with its prowess. 🏆 But how? Dive into this exclusive interview with CEO Frode Thomasson to uncover the magic.
“I would say that we don’t focus too much on the next season – but on the 20-year perspective for this club."
Exclusive interview with
@1913parmacalcio
owner
@Kyle_J_Krause
about having a long-term mindset that is rare in football.
Off The Pitch has crowed the most financially-sustainable club in European football
Because we want to celebrate clubs maintaining persistent financial sustainability, this analysis will look at the last three years of annual accounts.
Full analysis 👇
Rangers have seen great commercial success based on their global brand in the last four years
@RangersFC
commercial director James Bisgrove continues to discover hidden pockets of growth - with non-matchday revenues being a focus area.
#RangersFC
FIFA expects a cap on agents' fees to be implemented in March next year. Multiple representation will also be curbed, a practice it describes as "extremely common" and having a "significant negative impact" on the transfer system.
has learned that one of the members of Benitez's backroom staff has served notice on his property in the city and has moved his things out. Story by
@mhardysport
#newcastle
#nufc
Analysis of 40 football fan tokens
📉 18 peaked in market cap within the first two weeks after entering the market
📉
#FCBarcelona
token has seen biggest drop
Full analysis of
#Tokens
👇
#SaintsFC
's CCO,
@Charlie_Boss
, prioritizes fan engagement to restore connection after a challenging season. Leveraging multi-club benefits & tech advancements, they aim to enhance the fan experience.
Read interview
Last week, 777 Partners made
@VascodaGama
the largest transaction in the history of Brazilian football.
In this interview Juan Arciniegas, managing director, outlines how Vasco will fit into the company’s football portfolio.
Interview:
@DariuszMioduski
is a Harvard-educated lawyer who invested in
@LegiaWarszawa
in 2014.
"I've done a lot of complicated, complex deals as a lawyer and as an investor in the past. But nothing has been as challenging and as complex as football"
Houston Dash have appointed its first ever president Jessica O’Neill. Plans include adding sponsors to double revenue in the next three years.
Our Women's Football stories are never behind a paywall. Remember to sign up to our newsletter.
@HoustonDash
Off The Pitch surveyed more than 350 partnerships and tested them against
@premierleague
’s new rules on associated partnerships. We found there were just 15 such deals likely to come under scrutiny. 11 are linked to
#MCFC
.
@phmlombardi
@LombardiAssocs
Exciting times at
@NorwichCityFC
! 🚀 Their bold new strategy focuses on long-term success in the Premier League, blending financial prudence with a passion for football.
Interview with
#NCFC
finance director Anthony Richens 👇
#SuperLeague
claims it will put €10 billion of solidarity payments into European football over 23 years, but
@OffThePitch_com
research shows this is up to 50% less than under current system.
Read
@james_corbett
's special report.
📈 Private equity's foray into European football is surging! Investments jumped from €66.7M to a staggering €4.9B in just a year. The game is changing, but is football ready?
@PitchBook
Money League has been the industry benchmark when measuring financial strength by looking at revenue.
We have done some analysis to see whether including transfer revenue in total turnover makes any difference to financial strength.
Full analysis
Premier League clubs posted collective debts of €4.2bn in 2021 (excluding the €1.7bn Chelsea owed to now former owner).
Those figures would doubtless cause some eyes to water, but the full tale of borrowing is rather more nuanced.
Read analysis
FIFA’s new Clearing House, which goes live today, will put hundreds of millions into the pockets of small clubs and “change their lives”.
Exclusive interview with
@FIFAcom
's chief legal and compliance officer,
@GarciaSilvero
.
Who made the biggest operating profit in a
#COVID19
impacted year? 140 clubs recorded a combined operating loss of €4.7bn.
💰
@RCD_Mallorca
on top
💰 On pitch over performers as
#SUFC
,
#Atalanta
and
#GetafeCF
dominate
💰 Only 22 clubs posted a profit
An Off The Pitch investigation has revealed a company, seemingly with no staff, no active products, barely any assets and whose operating company is registered to a mailbox in London, is a longstanding official partner to
#MCFC
.
Off The Pitch crowns the most financially-sustainable football club in European football, based on a set of weighted proportional metrics.
This year, three clubs from Scandinavia -
@BrondbyIF
,
@Malmo_FF
and
@Glimt
- make it into the top 10, and all three became champions.
"...he had placed two bets totalling £600,000, winning him another £830,000"
#BHAFC
owner Tony Bloom has been described as a genius, who has used his mathamateical background to make him rich from gambling. Now he has applied it to his football clubs.
Seems like that will be goodbye to
#ChelseaFC
,
#RealMadrid
and
#ManchesterCity
.
"The clubs must go out and I expect that to happen on Friday, and then you will have to work out how to finish the Champions League," says Moller.
Gestifute's €7 million fee for
@Wolves
€40 million purchase of Fabio Silva raised eyebrowes, but the amount is far from unusual - sometimes the agency charges even more. Off The Pitch has taken a deeper look into Jorge Mendes' company.
A must read for all Bees fans. "Everything I am being asked to achieve relates to getting ready for the Premier League." In-depth interview with new
@BrentfordFC
CEO Jon Varney
@BeesGetwest
@Beesotted
While fans, sponsors, players, and other stakeholders have to wait almost a year before the financial reports are released, our forecast sheds light on the financial state of the 20 Premier League clubs shortly after the close of the accounting period.
Burnley set for a financial disaster? Off The Pitch has undertaken analysis to assess the impact the
#BurnleyFC
takeover, and specifically the debt incurred by it, could have on Burnley’s future finances.
Our analysis from last week is free to read.
Tottenham and Liverpool have been hailed for their 2017/18 accounts – but does that make these two clubs the most profitable in the Premiership? This weeks column by
@KieranMaguire
#COYS
#THFC
#LFC
#LiverpoolFC
📢 UCFB are delighted to announce an exciting partnership with
@OffThePitch_com
🤩
Giving UCFB & GIS students even greater access to the football industry, how its leaders think, behave, & the huge financial numbers behind it 💸
Full details 👉
Last month,
@meghannburke
,
@NWSL
Players’ Association Executive Director, secured an historic collective bargaining agreement.
"Players need to be able to survive, but beyond that, they want to play at the highest level"
Off The Pitch is thrilled to unveil a collaboration with Heart of Midlothian Football Club -
@JamTarts
-, serving as their official Football Finance Data Partner.
#Hearts
#JamTarts
Relegation is not on the menu. But they are prepared if it happens.
Just promoted
#Watfordfc
now include a 50 per cent salary reduction in case of relegation in all new player contracts.
Sporting director
@CGiaretta
on bid for stability.
#NeverGiveUp
"There are not many investments you can make that truly bring your childhood back"
The new co-owner of
@sscampobasso
Matt Rizzetta of
@North6thAgency
speaks about his personal stake in the club who via a tv-series want to raise their international brand.
Analysis: Is football losing its grip in the younger generations?
A whole 42 per cent of 13-23 year olds have no interest in sport.
"We have a real concern about how football is losing its grip and losing its salience a little bit," said
@cfmarshall
.
AS Roma are "one of a number of clubs" US businessman and investor Joseph DaGrosa "have looked at", the chairman of the Florida-based private equity firm GACP Sports tells Off The Pitch.
@Solano_56
#ASRoma
“If you sign a deal with a company with close ties to the governments of Russia, China, Qatar or Saudi Arabia - do you fully understand what you are helping them with?”
Things are getting complicated for executives in
@premierleague
and
@EFL
#FootballFinance
Private equity investment will continue even after the pandemic.
But stakeholders should be wary of how they frame future commercial and regulatory framework to keep up the interest.
Column by
@DrRob_Wilson
and
@DrDanPlumley
of
@sheffhallamuni
.
Spending this summer was close to breaking the one-window record from 2017. See transfer top 10 and how much each club spent in this story, where
@KieranMaguire
and
@DrRob_Wilson
give their take on the level of spending
#PremierLeague
#DeadlineDay
Scottish Premiership leaders
@RangersFC
managed to increase the number of commercial partners from 10 to 30 in the last 18 months. Furthermore they signed up nearly paying 30,000 members of Rangers around the world in the last 9 months.
#Rangers
Many clubs have an academy model that in reality works against how young people develop their skills and mindset, says club owner.
@FCNordsjaelland
recipe is actually rather simple as it appeals to some of humanity's basic instincts.
Clubs this season spent almost 50 per cent less on players, but for the Premier League it's another story, being one of the only leagues to see its spending balance deteriorate. Comments from Chris Winn,
@ucfb
.
Five years ago,
@andrearadri
and Aser Group completed a full takeover of
#LUFC
for £45 million. A deal is reportedly in place that values Leeds United at almost 10 times that amount.
Analysis of
@LUFC
under the ownership of Radrizzani.
#Championship
are reportedly discussing whether to implement an £18m wage cap. Data reveals little correlation between wage spend and league placement in England's second division, a stark contrast to the situation in the
#PremierLeague
The Multi Club Ownership market is booming.
These days football club investors are not satisfied by owning a stake in only one club.
We found 181 clubs where the owner or significant shareholders have stakes in other sides.
Atalanta were one of the few clubs in Europe to record a profit for the 19/20 season when Covid hit. What brought them here and what is the secret behind their success?
#GoAtalantaGo
#ForzaAtalanta
@Football_BM
One of the UK’s leading business of sport academics has created a new modelling system to value football clubs.
Interview with
@DrRob_Wilson
from
@sheffhallamuni
who says that the model provides “a more standardised model” than existing valuation models.
Andrea Agnelli seems convinced that the founding European Super League clubs have nothing to fear in terms of sanctions from
@UEFA
– but the upcoming French presidency of the Council of the European Union might be a joker in the pack for UEFA.
Fan tokens are everywhere in football. In the last few weeks alone, six clubs have launched a token. And Tuesday, UEFA partnered with Socios.
We have gathered data on 40 different fan
#Tokens
to analyse price development and token holders.
The pandemic will increase football's demand for management from other industries. Commercially driven executives with an innovative mindset are needed to deliver value for clubs and their commercial partners. Interview with
@InSport_Edu
@danielparr
VfL Bochum 1848 have signed a partnership agreement with Off The Pitch, making it the club's Official Football Finance Intelligence Partner.
As a part of the deal,
@VfLBochum1848eV
have now gained unlimited access to Off The Pitch’s intelligence platform.
#meinVfL
#FootballLaw
@Ant1Duval
, head of
@Sportslaw_Asser
, has criticised CAS for a lack of disclosure of finances and the secretive nature of proceedings.
Here is our interview with CAS director general Matthieu Reeb who responds to the claims.
#FootballLegal
Interview with Peter Moore who believes football needs to leverage the ‘metaverse’ – shared, 3D virtual spaces that directly replicate the real world – in order to maximise opportunities across broadcasting, fan engagement and commercial partnerships.
"We see a number of football governing bodies, including UEFA, acknowledging the need for reaching a new approach, for a new balance between the various stakeholders," says
@FansEurope
chief
@RonanEvain
after
#SuperLeague
collapse.
Breaking:
@UEFA
confirms it has opened a consultation process on the future of Financial Fair Play, which one of its leading executives says has been rendered "purposeless" in its current format in the wake of the Covid-19 crisis.
The company
@Olocip_Lab
, spearheaded by
@eGranero11
, is labelled one of the most innovative enterprises in the football industry. "The world of football is generally very conservative and is often built on old-fashioned patterns."
German clubs have recently been praised for their ownership & business models.
But when it comes to financial disclosure they are far behind their European rivals.
"German clubs are really a black box in terms of transparency" /
@hhlleipzig
LaLiga clubs current financial liabilities 350 per cent from 18/19 to 19/20.
@SBI_Barcelona
lecturer and managing director of consultancy
@sportsvalue_
@amirsomoggi
describes the situation as "worrying" with normalisation of revenues some way off.
Off The Pitch editor in chief/co-founder Kasper Kronenberg and team are now in place at the World Football Summit in Madrid. Come by our stand and have a chat about our football business news service
#WFS19
Exclusive interview with
#DCFC
owner Mel Morris about walking away to force a sale of the club.
"I could see that many people that we're in discussions with, were simply not going to do a deal unless a critical event occurred."
174 European clubs, excluding
#LaLiga
, paid a total of €905m to player agents in 2020.
💰
#CFC
top the list
💰 The
#PremierLeague
"Big Six" all among the 15 clubs who paid out most
💰
#LOSC
and
#Ajax
are the few surprises in top 10
Agent fee analysis 👇
150 European clubs have published their 2020 financial accounts. Who paid out most for a league point?
💰 14
@premierleague
clubs in top 20 reveal how expensive the league is
💰
#NCFC
the negative surprise
Full wages analysis 👇
Is it time for a rethink on managerial recruitment? Sacking of Moore and Scholes' resignation brings managerial departures up to same level as last year.
#PremierLeague
#EFL
Ziyech, Chilwell, Werner and soon Harvertz -
#CFC
are on a big spending spree despite Covid-19. And by looking at the financial data since 2008,
@ChelseaFC
could be set for a new club spending record in the financial year 2020/21.
#FootballFinance
We launch Off The Pitch Legal - a weekly newsletter dedicated to international football law - with this story:
@Ant1Duval
,
@Sportslaw_Asser
, is criticising an increasingly powerful CAS: Disciplinary hearings should by default be public.