Swiss Ramble Profile picture
Aug 23, 2018 12 tweets 11 min read Twitter logo Read on Twitter
As talk intensifies of a potential move of Arsenal’s chief executive, Ivan Gazidis, to Milan, I thought it would be interesting to look at how the club’s financials have developed since he arrived in January 2009. Some thoughts in the following thread #AFC #Milan #ACMilan
#AFC revenue has grown by an impressive £198m under Gazidis, only outpaced by #MCFC £366m & #MUFC £303m in absolute terms. However, this was the 2nd smallest % growth of Big 6. Furthermore, 2017/18 revenue is likely to be £40-50m lower, due to not qualifying for Champions League.
Analysing #AFC £198m revenue growth under Gazidis, most (£125m) is from TV, due to central Premier League deals. As Warren Buffett said, “a rising tide lifts all boats”. Commercial up £69m, but this was a slam dunk after long-term sponsorships linked to stadium funding expired.
#AFC commercial revenue, where you would expect Gazidis to have most influence, has grown by £69m, the second lowest of the Big 6 over this period, only ahead of #THFC £44m. #AFC growth was around a third of #MUFC £209m and also behind #MCFC £180m, #CFC £81m and #LFC £76m.
In fairness to Gazidis, Emirates extended their #AFC deal (shirt sponsorship & naming rights) from 18/19 for £40m a year (up £10m) – the same as #CFC & #LFC, but below #MUFC £58m (current exchange rates) & #MCFC £45m. Also added “visit Rwanda” as sleeve sponsor for £10m a year.
In 2013 Gazidis said #AFC “should be able to compete at a level like a club such as Bayern Munich”. Since then, revenue gap fell from £127m to £82m in 2017, but this is still a large shortfall. With the anticipated £40-50m revenue reduction in 18/19, gap will be same as it was.
In 2011 Gazidis said that “we deliberately kept some powder dry” re #AFC spending plans, which has proved to be a poor strategy, as transfer fees have continued to significantly rise, while the weaker Pound has further reduced the club’s spending power.
Furthermore, #AFC ability to outspend others has diminished. In 2012 they had almost as much cash (£154m) as the rest of the Premier League combined (£181m), but in 2017 other clubs have seen their cash boosted by new PL TV deals, so they now have £819m compared to #AFC £180m.
Indeed, after many years of rising cash, this has actually fallen at #AFC in last 2 years: £2m in 2016 & £46m in 2017. This is arguably no bad thing, as it is partly due to higher player purchases, but it does mean that Arsenal now have less cash than #MUFC £290m & #THFC £200m.
Up to the end of the 2016/17 season Gazidis had received £18m remuneration from #AFC. Assuming a similar level in 2017/18 as the previous season, this means that he has trousered over £21m to date. His latest £2.6m remuneration represents a 31% increase over his first full year.
Despite a slight decrease in 2016/17 Gazidis’ #AFC remuneration of £2.6m is only below Daniel Levy’s extraordinary £6m at #THFC (though this apparently includes a backdated pay rise and bonuses), but just above Ed Woodward at #MUFC. Almost three times his #LFC equivalent £0.9m.
From a financial perspective Ivan Gazidis has not been a bad chief executive at #AFC, just not especially good. Whether his track record merits Milan’s eager pursuit is debatable. If he does leave Arsenal, the club should be able to find a replacement at least as capable.

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More from @SwissRamble

Oct 4, 2018
#RealMadrid 2017/18 accounts cover a season when they finished third in La Liga, but won the Champions League for a third consecutive year, the fourth time in 5 years, plus the Club World Cup and European and Spanish Super Cups. Some thoughts in the following thread.
#RealMadrid profit before tax increased by €17m from €26m to €43m (profit after tax up €10m from €21m to €31m). Revenue (Madrid’s definition) rose 11% (€76m), their largest rise since 2000, to a record high of €751m, while profit on player sales was 4% (€2m) up at €54m.
All #RealMadrid revenue streams increased with the largest growth in marketing €41m (16%) to €295m, followed by international & friendly matches €13m (17%) to €100m, broadcasting €13m (8%) to €178m and membership fees & stadium revenue €8m (5%) to €174m.
Read 39 tweets
Sep 25, 2018
Manchester United are the second Premier League club after #MCFC to publish 2017/18 financial results, covering a season when they were runners-up in the league and FA Cup, but were eliminated by Sevilla in the Champions League last 16. Some thoughts in the following thread #MUFC
#MUFC profit before tax down from £57m to £26m, mainly due to higher player costs, as wage bill shot up £32m and player amortisation rose £14m, while revenue only up £9m. Tax bill increased from £17m to £63m as a change in US corporate tax rate led to a £49m non-cash write-off.
#MUFC revenue only grew £9m (2%). Only meaningful increase was broadcasting, up £10m (5%) to £204m. Commercial income was basically flat at £276m, while match day dropped £2m (2%) to £110m. Profit on player sales rose £7m to £18m.
Read 39 tweets
Sep 17, 2018
Ten years after Sheikh Mansour acquired the club, Manchester City’s 2017/18 financial results covered a season when they won the Premier League in some style, won the League Cup and reached the Champions League quarter-finals. Some thoughts in the following thread #MCFC
#MCFC profit before tax up from £0.1m (£1.1m after tax) to £10.4m, as previous season was adversely impacted by change in year-end resulting in an extra month’s costs with minimal revenue uplift. Revenue rose £27m (6%) to £500.5m, only second English club above £0.5 bln.
All #MCFC revenue streams up: commercial income rose £14m (7%) to £232m; broadcasting increased £8m (4%) to £212m; and match day was £5m (9%) higher at £57m. Profit on player sales was up £4m to £39m.
Read 37 tweets
Sep 10, 2018
Prize money for UEFA club competitions significantly increases in 2018/19, including a new coefficient ranking payment that better rewards historically successful clubs rather than those with larger national TV rights deals. Some thoughts follow on Champions League distribution.
The amount distributed to clubs in UEFA Champions League (group stage onwards) will rise €681m (54%) from €1.269 bln to €1.950 bln in 2018/19. This is split: participation €488m (25%), performance €585m (30%), TV pool €292m (15%) and coefficient rankings €585m (30%).
In 2018/19 each of the 32 clubs qualifying for Champions League group stage gets €15.25m plus €2.7m for a win and €900k for a draw. Additional prize money for each further stage reached: last 16 €9.5m, quarter-final €10.5m, semi-final €12m, final €15m and winners €19m.
Read 15 tweets
Sep 4, 2018
Atletico Madrid’s 2016/17 accounts cover a season when they finished third in La Liga and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League under coach Diego Simeone. Some thoughts on their finances in the following thread #Atleti #AúpaAtleti #AtleticoMadrid
#Atleti profit before tax improved from €1m to €5m (profit after tax up from €4m to €5m), as revenue rose €48m (21%) to a record high of €281m, though profit on player sales fell €7m to €37m. No repeat of the 15/16 €27m extraordinary charge linked to stadium development.
The main driver of the #Atleti revenue increase was the La Liga TV deal, up €31m to €99m, though Champions League TV money was €9m lower at €61m. Commercial rose €22m (41%) to €76m, while match day was €4m (11%) higher at €45m.
Read 41 tweets
Aug 27, 2018
A long-suffering Newcastle United fan asked how their financial performance compared with Tottenham Hotspur since Mike Ashley bought the club in July 2007, so here’s a few thoughts in the following thread #NUFC #THFC
Both #NUFC and #THFC have focused on profit. #NUFC have essentially broken even during Ashley’s tenure with £4m aggregate profit, while #THFC have reported an impressive £215m. Worth noting that £188m of that came in last 4 seasons, when #NUFC had a £47m loss in Championship.
#NUFC revenue has fallen by £1m since Ashley’s arrival from £87m to £86m, deflated by the lower money in the Championship. In the same period, #THFC revenue has tripled, rising £203m from £103m to £306m. In fairness, #NUFC 2018 revenue will be much higher (£175-180m estimate).
Read 17 tweets

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