SUNDERLAND are chasing a spot in the play-offs, hoping they can win back a place in the Premier League. Their finances for 2023-24 demonstrate why the top flight is so sought-after by Championship clubs. Their revenues totalled £ 38 million, a 7% rise on 2022-23 but modest when compared to their peak Premier earnings of £ 124 million. Sunderland made a pre-tax loss of £ 9.1 million, their 18th successive season of losses, but a little lower than the previous campaign. All revenue streams showed increases, with the club’s commercial activities generating £ 16.1 million (+9%) while matchday income totalled £ 11.6 million (+9%) and broadcasting up by 4% to £ 10.4 million. Sunderland’s wage bill came in at £ 30.5 million, 22% higher than the previous year and 82% of income. The club made a profit of £ 8.8 million on the sale of players, a big improvement on 2022-23 when they made less than half a million. The owners of Sunderland, Kyril Louis-Dreyfuss (64%) and Juan Sartori (36%) are owed around £ 20 million but it is hoped this will be converted to equity at some stage. Net debt went up by more than £ 12 million in 2023-24.
CHELSEA may have something of a civil war brewing as the shareholders continue to be at loggerheads over the future of the club’s stadium. Todd Boehly, who fronted the bid to take Chelsea off the hands of Roman Abramovich, has hinted the consortium could fracture over their disagreements. Clearlake Capital, the 61.5% shareholder of Chelsea, is frustrated by the club’s relatively low capacity of 40,000. Stamford Bridge is somewhat restricted when it comes to expansion, although the club has bought the 1.2 acre site from the Stoll foundation, the club’s neighbours for many years. Both Boehly (12.8% owner) and Clearlake have, apparently, explored ways to buy-out their partner. Ultimately, until the club either enlarge their traditional home or move, they will always fall short when it comes to stadium profitability.
JAPAN are the first country to qualify for the 2026 World Cup after beating Bahrain 2-0 in Tokyo. They will be appearing in their eighth successive World Cup. Japan breezed through the qualifiers and still have three games to go. They won all six of their first phase matches and didn’t conceded a single goal. In the third round, they have won six and drawn one. Players like Ayase Ueda (Feyenoord), Daichi Kamada (Crystal Palace) and Take Kubo (Real Sociedad) have shone in the AFC Qualifying competition. Japan are currently 15th in FIFA’s country rankings.
THE CLUB World Cup continues to have an uneasy birth. With the draw completed months ago, Mexico’s Club León have been removed from the competition due to their ownership structure. Both Club León and Pachuca are owned by José de Jesús Martínez Patiño (Grupo Pachuca), which brings the clubs into a conflict under FIFA’s multi-club ownership rules. Patiño is majority owner in both. FIFA are still mulling over León’s replacement and it seems likely Costa Rica’s Alajuelense will join the competition in Group D with Chelsea, Flamengo and Espérance de Tunis. Cynics are suggesting that Saudi Arabia’s Al-Nassr (Cristiano Ronaldo and all) will be invited!
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