PLAYING BUDGET WILL BE PROTECTED
‘Competitive’ Pompey kitty to work with amid rising costs
POMPEY will have a competitive playing budget as they aim to finally get out of League One next season.
And chief executive Andy Cullen has revealed the club’s owners will protect Danny Cowley’s player kitty by sucking up rising costs the nation faces.
Cowley is busy putting his recruitment plans together, both in terms of retaining out-of-contract players and supplementing the existing faces who will be around next season.
With Europe in the midst of an energy crisis, businesses are facing cost hikes and challenges over how to balance the books off the back of the Covid pandemic.
Cullen explained supporters won’t pay through the nose when it comes to season tickets to offset that hit - nor will the playing budget be impacted.
He believes that shows owners Tornante retain an ambition to progress the club forward.
Cullen said: ‘It’s a competitive budget again.
‘We saw good use of it in January and I feel that was reflected in terms of the players who left us early in the window and the players we were able to bring in at different points in the window.
‘The budget is a very, very competitive one.
‘I’m not going to get into whether it’s higher, lower or the same.
‘What’s important is we’re able to compete and we’re using our resources properly.
‘One thing which is very complicated and a big factor not just in terms of players but season-ticket pricing, is the cost base of the football club.
‘Like it will be for every single person in the country, it will be materially impacted by rising energy costs, rising cost of living as well as national insurance for both employee and employer.
‘We have really again worked hard with the owners to put a budget together which protects the playing budget, while at the same time doing our best to protect supporters as well - even though there may be a little hit to us this year.’
With Fratton Park’s £11.5m redevelopment continuing, Cullen explained capacity is expected to increase as each stage of work is completed.
Filling those seats will provide a key revenue stream for Pompey moving forward.
Cullen added: ‘What we’re keen to do next season is do our very best to maximise attendances, because we will have increased capacity next year. We’re very mindful of the pressures to our business - but also the increased costs supporters will face next year on the essential items in their lives.’