49ers Enterprises, the investment arm of the San Francisco NFL franchise, have been explicit about doing things differently to their predecessors at Leeds United.
Paraag Marathe and his 49ers deputies have been involved with Leeds United as minority shareholders since 2018 but only took full control in the summer after their relegation from the Premier League in 2022-23.
As such, after an education in the slings and arrows of English football in the Championship, 2025-26 will be the Americans’ first season in charge of a top-flight club.
The 49ers have the financial muscle to compete with the best and their decision to buy into Rangers and press ahead with plans to expand Elland Road are emblematic of their ambition.
Leeds United chairman Paraag Marathe attends a match at Elland Road
Photo by MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Their activity in the transfer market so far this summer has been relatively modest, however. In the context of recent seasons at least, where the trend has been to spend £100m-plus.
Lucas Perri became their seventh fee-paying signing of the summer in late July, all but one of whom have been in the £10-20m bracket. With just three weeks of the window remaining, Leeds are still looking to renovate their forward line. A deal to bring Aleksandar Mitrovic from the Saudi Pro League is in the offing, as is the possibility of signing Inter Milan centre-forward Mehdi Taremi.
Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) mean Leeds are only allowed to lose a maximum of £61m in the three-season period up until the end of 2025-26, which – after losing almost that figure in 2023-24 alone – could be somewhat limiting, even after huge player sales last season.
But the 49ers have maintained that they always spend up to the limit of PSR, so the challenge they face is raising revenue and limiting their baseline financial losses in order to compete on the recruitment and wage front.
Infographic explaining the PSR (Profit and Sustainability Rules, formerly known as FFP) for Premier League, Championship and UEFA clubs
PSR infographic. Credit: Adam Williams, GRV Media
UEFA’s official data and Leeds’ ever-rising commercial income illustrate just how big a ‘brand’ Leeds are – and the consensus among football finance experts is that, with a little TLC, the West Yorkshire side have the capacity to be one of the biggest in the country, if not in Europe.
The 49ers believe that squeezing more cash from their biggest asset, Elland Road, is central to that. And Leeds fans need only look across the Atlantic to see the owners’ approach when it comes to stadium revenue.
49ers bank record stadium income ahead of Elland Road expansion
The Premier League is one of global sport’s big beasts, but it is nowhere near as lucrative as the NFL.
Unlike in Leeds, where the 49ers will lose money every season and likely will not take any money out of the club until the point of exit, the San Francisco 49ers are profitable every single season.
Because of the NFL’s salary cap, revenue pooling, and cooperative philosophy between owners, the 49ers generate a profit – and, by extension, a dividend – every year regardless of what happens on the field.
And while there are fewer matches in an NFL season, the 49ers still earn a staggering amount in ticketing revenue annually.
As relayed by Sportico, the 49ers generated £131m in stadium income last season. It is the third campaign in succession that they have topped the leader boards in this department.
That equates to around £8m per regular season game in the NFL. For context, Leeds earned just less than £31m through the turnstiles in the same period, which averages at around £650,000 per match at Elland Road.
A general view of Elland Road ahead of a Leeds United match
Photo by Gary Oakley/Getty Images
Commercialising the stadium as part of the move to raise capacity to beyond 53,000 will be key to swelling their revenue in this area.
That likely means an increased emphasis on hospitality and premium seating, as well as incentives for fans to arrive at the stadium early and spend more money.
Leeds United set to be one of the Premier League’s biggest matchday income earners
The £31m Leeds earned at Elland Road last season was comfortably the biggest in the Championship.
In the Premier League, expect that figure to rise closer to £40m. And at an expanded stadium? Leeds will want to achieve the biggest matchday income outside the so-called ‘Big Six’.
Updated chart showing the matchday incomes and stadium capacities of top English clubs
Matchday income and stadium capacities chart Credit: Adam Williams/TBR Football/GRV Media
At 53,000, Leeds’ stadium will be very slightly bigger than Everton’s new home. And while it will have a more modest capacity than West Ham, they will expect to earn more.
Several rivals, however, are planning either moves to new stadia or major expansion projects themselves.