COVID CRUNCH
Celtic see revenue fall by £13.2m in pandemic
The brutal f i nancial impact of Covid-19 was laid bare last night as Celtic revealed that their revenue tumbled by 15.8 per cent after the pandemic took a grip.
Unable to play fixtures after March 7 due to lockdown, the club were denied significant matchday revenue as the season concluded with eight games yet to play.
The upshot was t hat t he Parkhead club saw their income fall by a hefty 15.8 per cent from £83.4million to £70.2m.
Celtic’s profit before taxation was just £0.1m compared to last year’s £11.3m with cash in the bank net of borrowing down from £28.6m to £18.3m.
Given the uncertainty of the current climate, the club have opted to increase their borrowing facility from £2m to £13m, should it be required.
‘The overwhelming event in the year under review was the
emergence of Covid-19 and the attendant restrictions on social movement and trade,’ read a statement from chairman Ian Bankier relating to the financial year ending June 30. ‘This has had an adverse impact on our operations and our balance sheet. ‘However, the board continues to monitor the situation closely, taking proactive measures to ensure the club and our colleagues remain safe and is in the best position to allow football to continue. ‘Unsurprisingly, Covid-19 has had a material detrimental effect on the financial results and the year ended 30 June 2020 saw revenue fall to £70.2m (2019: £83.4m) and profit before tax fall to £0.1m (2019: £11.3m). ‘This was largely attributable to the value destructive impact of the pandemic across many aspects of our business. ‘Nevertheless, these results are satisfactory in the circumstances at hand. Our year-end cash net of bank borrowings was £18.2m (2019: £28.6m). Post year-end, we also took the opportunity to increase our existing revolving credit facility from £2m to £13m to provide a further buffer should it ever be required.’ With the Scottish Government recently tightening restrictions, there appears no imminent return of supporters to stadia. ‘Our hard work and measured approach to investment in recent years has provided a degree of protection, but given the inherent uncertainty of the current environment, we must proceed and invest with a degree of caution,’ said Bankier. ‘Nevertheless, we remain confident in the fundamentals of our football model and since the Balance Sheet date we have strengthened our player squad. ‘As we look ahead, our immediate priorities are to work with the football authorities and Government to have fans return to watching football in our stadium in a safe manner.’ Chief executive Peter Lawwell added: ‘Your Board has always managed the club by balancing the objective of delivering football success and retaining sufficient reserves to manage downturns. ‘Whilst the scale and impact of the current Covid-19 crisis could never conceivably have been predicted, our prudent strategy puts us in a better position than many as we seek to navigate an exit from the current crisis with the club intact.’