City announce record RM2.6b revenues

LONDON: English Premier League leaders Manchester City announced record revenues of £473.4 million (RM2.6 billion) for the past financial year on Wednesday.

The figures published in City’s annual report for 2016-17 mark an increase of 21 per cent on the previous year’s revenues and represent the third successive year the club’s revenues have grown.

City are flying on the pitch as well at the moment, with Pep Guardiola’s free-scoring side eight points clear at the Premier League summit and into the Champions League last 16.

“This report is about making sure our fans and our partners can see the true detailed status of every aspect of the club,” said City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak in a press release.

“What hopefully comes across is that the football organisation and off-field business have the right symmetry and balance to allow us to continue to further strengthen and grow.”

City, who were purchased by Sheikh Mansour of Abu Dhabi in 2008, remain debt-free.

During Sheikh Mansour’s tenure, they have won two Premier League titles, two League Cups and the FA Cup.

The club had never previously recorded revenues above £400 million and Al Mubarak said revenue growth was moving “towards the £500 million mark.”

Guardiola failed to win a trophy in his first season as City manager, but chief executive Ferran Soriano said the club’s objectives were in line with the manager’s.

“We are committed to playing beautiful football and to win,” he said. “Both elements are compatible and the second is a consequence of the first.”

Khaldoon said the nine trophies won by City’s youth teams showed youth development was “a central pillar for the club’s long-term sustainability.”

He also paid tribute to City’s women’s team for winning a treble of domestic trophies, calling it an “outstanding achievement.”