Healthy accounts signal forward momentum for United?

Getting things right?
Getting things right?
It’s probably not escaped many of you by now but yesterday United revealed their latest set of audited accounts, and they make for pleasant reading.

The headline figure is that we made a small profit of £1.4 million, but it’s what has been done to get to that figure that is so impressive.

I know finances and football fans sometimes don’t mix but I like my numbers if I’m being honest. Of course some people will say that all that matters is what happens on the pitch, which is fair enough, but these days it must be realised that what happens in the boring world of accounts actually has an impact on what we see on the pitch, so with that in mind I’ll take a look and see how we are shaping up financially.

It’s important to consider the time period for which these accounts are, erm, accountable for. They essentially refer to the year end of June 2012 which basically means that they are figures from last season when we signed the likes of Demba Ba, Papiss Cisse, Sylvain Marveaux, Yohan Cabaye and Davide Santon. They don’t include our recent January purchases and it’s pretty standard for accounts to be so out of date by the time we get to find out about them.

Profit is actually down from the previous set of accounts (ending June 2011) where we made a profit of £32.6 million, which was boosted by the £35m sale of Andy Carroll to Liverpool. Look through the detail and we’ve turned what is basically a small loss of £2.4m into a small profit of £1.4m.

Turnover has increased to £93.3m (up 5.4% on the previous year) which will put us back into the top-20 clubs in the world in terms of revenue generation and means that we’ll have a detailed breakdown of all things when Deloitte release their football rich list. The main reason for the increase in turnover was a 14.6% increase in TV money brought about by a 5th placed finish last term and the increased merit payments dished out by broadcasters for such a high finish.

However it isn’t all a story of increases. Income from ticket sales has dropped by 7% due to initiatives such as the season ticket price freeze and other offers like packaged ticket deals where you buy a number of games for a discounted price. Attendances are up on the previous season (2010-2011) but tickets are cheaper.

Another area which has dropped is income from commercial revenue which fell by 12.7%. However this does not include the new deal with Wonga which will kick in next season along with another deal, that has yet to be announced but will be “the biggest in our history” according to Derek Llambias so that figure will improve dramatically.

One of the long-standing issues is the debt we owe Mike Ashley. Granted it’s an interest-free loan but it’s stayed the same for ages and increased during our Championship season. From this set of accounts we paid back £11m which now means our outstanding debt to Ashley now stands at roughly £123m, so still high but decreasing.

Going forward…

Derek Llambias has already said that there is cash to spend in the summer, and I’m not surprised. We’re going to see a large increase in TV revenue due to the new broadcasting rights distribution, plus we have the new Wonga deal AND that historically high deal that we don’t know about yet.

In summary…

All in all it’s good news. All the players we sign these days have their transfer fees paid up front so we signed the players mentioned earlier on, which in turn increased our wage bill by 20% (to £64.1m or a 68.7% wages-to-turnover ratio) and have managed to pay some of the money owed to Ashley back. Without us paying that back the finances would have been healthier but I get the feeling that was “spare” cash and was just paid back because everything was accounted for and the surplus balance wasn’t going to be used for anything.

Everything is heading in the right direction in terms of the finances of the club, and we seem to be getting towards having a competitive squad with good players in it on the pitch. Mistakes have been made and the club have admitted that they made a balls up by not investing in the summer but hopefully lessons have been learned and we can continue to improve, both on and off the pitch. If we can there is potential in this club that could finally start to be realised!

Well done to all at Newcastle United!

About toonsy

A lifelong Newcastle fan and current webmaster of this very 'blog who has the sole aim of creating a place by Newcastle United fans, for Newcastle United fans.

112 thoughts on “Healthy accounts signal forward momentum for United?

  1. MM the one I find the strangest is that he was 100% sure Pards would get us relegated, but still wouldn’t call for him to be sacked, so he was happy enough to go along with a manager that would take us down 😯

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  2. time for a formation, not posted one for a while 😀 for man.c game
    ……………………………… Elliott………………………………
    Simpson………….taylor…………mbiawa…………Jonas
    ………………..Cabaye……..Sissoko……..Anita……..
    ……. Marevaux………………………………………..Gouffran
    ……………………………………..Cisse………………………..

    not a bad side when you consider the no shows are
    Krul
    Collocini
    Debuchy
    Santon
    hairdara
    Tiote
    ben Afra.

    with a bench of
    Harper
    campbell
    Perch
    Bigi
    Obertan
    Gosling
    suppose Shola too…

    we are getting a decent squad together, and not shelling out loads of money, bit more wheeling and dealing in the summer things should look better for next season.

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  3. Dave – ignore Aussie, by giving credit which you’re right is due, proves that you’re a man of ya word however much it sticks in ya throat mate 😉

    Ashley clear has this 8yr plan and is sticking with it and slowly but surely is turning NUFC into a solid, stable and healthy club. As an NUFC fan who will love this club whether Ashley owned it, Pardew managed it and whoever played for it – I find this great news.
    People will have their opinions on whether its right Ashley should or shouldn’t take money from the club to repay his loan, or whether he should or shouldn’t use SJP to advertise SD.
    One thing that surely can’t be argued though is that despite the things he’s got wrong since he took over the club (and there have been a few), we are in a far better position on and off the pitch since Ashley took charge.

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  4. oh, and after watching Santon’s defending against man city at sjp its a bonus he’s out this week.

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  5. agree with Sharpy, Its Ashley’s money in the end, its doesn’t matter if it sits on the nufc balance sheet as a +£11m or on the balance sheet as £11m of the loan… paper money that doesn’t really exist anyway, just a figure in a particular column on Ashleys accounts, personal or club. Its all his….

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  6. its probably some tax dodge on keeping the profits low, but I’m not well up with tax dodging, cant afford it…

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  7. Davo @ 76 – There you again misrepresenting. You and Troy were the dream team for that. That was not my position at all and you won’t find anything to back that up.

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  8. Kev @ 81 – It does matter where the money sits. If its a loan, its Ashley’s asset and if it’s cash on the balance sheet, its the club’s, and it will stay with NUFC following any sale. Ashley can’t take that money with him, regardless of whether it’s reflected in the sale/purchase price.

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  9. Munich @ 73 – So do you not subscribe to the view that the club could not attract a better manager in the whole world whilst Ashley is here? Didn’t you know that Ashley treats everyone like dirt,which means any manager better than “yes man” Pardew would not be interested in managing one of the biggest and greatest clubs in the world?

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  10. Blackley & Brownlie said March 29, 2013 at 18:38 …..

    “Munich @ 73 – So do you not subscribe to the view that the club could not attract a better manager in the whole world whilst Ashley is here?”…

    B&B, no I do not subscribe to that view. I think that the club could and would attract a “better” manager to the club, if and when he decides he needs to do that. It seems at the moment as if he is quite happy with Pardew, though that might change if by some bizarre quirk we get relegated. Even if we were to get relegated I have a feeling Ashley would stick with Pardew…

    No I don’t know Ashley personally, so cannot vouch for the fact that he treats everyone like dirt, at the end of the day most managers must have a certain amount of “yes man” about them, otherwise this is not conjusive to a good team morale. I’m sure there are lots of managers interested in managing one of the biggest and greatest clubs in the world (your words), time will show how things transpire in the next few years. We have tried recruiting some top name managers and that didn’t work. Why not try with a lesser name, who is at the end of the day, insanely being touted as a possible next England manager ?

    Or do you have a taste for all things foreign, and that only a foreign manager will do for our beloved NUFC ? The only manager which I might consider swapping at the mo is perhaps David Moyes, and he blows hot and cold too (whilst working on a limited budget 😉 )

    B&B would you consider it an improvement if David Moyes were to take over at NUFC ? If not, could you also suggest YOUR replacement for Pardew ?

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  11. Munich @ 86 – That clarifies your position then. You’re not in agreement with Big Dave, as I thought you were.

    Big Dave – See my comments on next thread.

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  12. B&B, did you have the impression that I was siding with Big Dave for some reason ?

    I was enjoying a discussion with yourself 🙂

    I mentioned a few weeks back that I couldn’t wait for this season to end, and I still stand by that. This season has been really poor, it all started badly when I went to see the toon in the friendly here east of Munich, with the whole pre-season debacle as to where we were going to play, no-one knowing what wwas going on etc, through the Ba saga, through the Collo saga etc etc, with the season not really picking up at all.

    Pardew has no excuses next season, and I also mentioned a few weeks back that if things went as bad next season as this then I would be more vociferous in my criticism of him.. 👿

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  13. Munich @ 90 – That’s what I thought until you seem to side with Dave and suggest I might like to see “Laudrup, Coyle, MON or Brendan Rodgers” in place of Pards. 😯

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  14. B&B, have you noticed that you never seem to answer a direct question ?

    Regarding your post @91, you are a huge critic of Pardew, you cannot avoid that, but you rubber-eared my response at 86, and my direct questions aimed at you. You do come across as having a penchant for some kind of dynamic foreign manager who “should be doing a lot better with the resources that we have available”..

    I spelt out my feelings regarding Pardew @90. If next season runs as badly as this I’ll be well peeved… League position is one thing, but the way we have played is my biggest bugbear…

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  15. Munich – If I don’t answer a question, it’s never cos I’m running scared. It’s often because I’ve spent most of the time trying to correct some misrepresentation or other first. Will be back in a mo but the buzzers buzzing to tell me my bacon’s ready.

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  16. B & b… i would guess when ashley sells the club the loan will be called in at sale time. as part of the payment profile. so doesnt matter if the sale price includes or excludes the 11m. the sale price will be loan + market rate for the club… Eg 110m + 100m or 120m + 90m as cash will be lower. as i say its all his. the club has no accounts. hes not a shareholder. hes the owner.

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  17. B&B@93, I’ve noticed that mate. Sometimes you get me confuddled, but that isn’t too difficult 🙂 😆

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  18. Kev, that’s why I cannot understand the big issue about who’s money it is.

    One thing is for sure, Ashley stands to inherit a shed load of money next season from the new footy rights deal, and the toon will be receiving that EVERY SEASON. 10 or 20 mill here or there will seem like peanuts in comparison.

    I suppose the bottom line will be that the English clubs will have even more money, and will be paying even MORE exhorbitant prices for seriously overrated British players… whilst Carr is stealthily tiptoeing round europe..

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  19. Munich – Would it be an improvement if Moyes took over? Yes, I think it would as he works on a much smaller budget and does better. Am I advocating him? No, I think there might be better managers out there than him.

    Who would I suggest as a replacement? When people say they hope we go for this CF or that CB, I’ve usually never heard of them. I’m not interested enough to follow it, but besides, I believe the job of selecting a manager should be done by a professional headhunter, like Graham Carr is with players. Apparently, however, that blows the validity of my opinion out of the water. It’s not a legitimate stance simply to say you can’t believe that a better manager than pards would come to the toon if ashley weren’t here.

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  20. Kev @ 94 – That’s right. It is all the same to Ashley. Ashley could write off the loan to the club tomorrow, and it’s all the same to him. Why doesn’t he? Tax reasons would be my first suggestion. It is beneficial for certain tax purposes to hold a loan rather than to hold equity.

    The crucial point is NUFC’s balance sheet. That’s all that matters to us fans. One of your scenarios is better for NUFC’s balance sheet than the other. That’s my point that I’m waiting for dave to answer.

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  21. B&B…. the tinnies and the bacon aren’t working too well. I started to follow you @97, and then just at the end of your statement you threw me a googly 🙄 😆 😆

    Read my post @86 where I said … I think that the club COULD AND WOULD attract a “better” manager to the club, if and when he (Ashley)decides he needs to do that. It seems at the moment as if he is quite happy with Pardew, though that might change if by some bizarre quirk we get relegated. Even if we were to get relegated I have a feeling Ashley would stick with Pardew…

    btw Moyes may be an improvement, however, we need to first see how AP performs next season with a full squad of purples available to him… 😉

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  22. Kev – I’ve just noticed your last bit: “the club has no accounts. hes not a shareholder.” What do you mean?

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  23. no disrespect to any good accountants out there, it just aint my cup of Darjeeling 🙁

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  24. Munich – I’m fighting fires on all fronts here. No, I have been meaning to say, I agree with your summary position. I don’t agree with Big Dave’s comments and so, to the extent you agree with him, I have to disagree with you. I certainly don’t hold to the managers you’ve put to my name.

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  25. B&B@103, I’m right with you there.

    Then I have misread you, as I have you pegged as a Laudrup lover and friend of all things foreign on the manager front. Basically an ABP advocate … 🙂

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  26. Munich – I’ve accused Dave, and anyone else carping about SD not paying for advertising, of nitpicking. I’m simply saying that Ashley has benefited the club many more times over by way of an interest free loan. Dave says SD is not Ashley and therefore SD should be paying no matter what Ashley does. If Ashley says he’ll benefit the club to the tune of £10M if the club benefits SD of which he is a majority shareholder to the tune of say £1M, why would quibble and nitpick? As I say, if you had a rich benefactor, it would be an insult to expect him to pay you for the cup of tea you’ve given him as he explains to you how he’s going to meet all your mortgage interest payments.

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  27. Munich @ 104 – No, I’m on record (Dave will have it bookmarked no doubt) as saying I’m not putting forward any names. I don’t need to in order to have a valid argument, and I’m not knowledgeable enough to know the world manager scene. I think’s that a perfectly fair stance, but others would disagree. They would say NUFC, a major force in world football, relatively speaking, could not get a better manager in the whole world than Pardew whilst Ashley is there. Aint that right Dave?

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  28. Munich – The old bacon got a bit crispy, but fortunately not so much that I was having to fight another fire. 😆

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  29. Big Dave, please just ignore Sharpy when he asks you to ignore me 🙂 🙂

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  30. Simple bb..the club is mike ashley.not some mythical “the club”. its like his savings account. his retirement fund. yep it might be called nufc but its his account. he ownes the whole lock stock and barrell. so when you say he loaned the club money thats not some third party. its like me putting a tenner in my savings account. it doesnt belong to anyone else..there is no nufc. that was sold to mike ashley

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