“We were faced with a number of different challenges and we met these challenges head on”
● Turnover up from £11.3m to £12.1m ● £18m stadium refit nearly finished
Hearts owner ANN BUDGE welcomes a set of accounts which show a slightly reduced profit of £1.8m and an increased turnover for the Tynecastle club.
Hearts’ latest annual accounts show a profit of £1.8million and an £800,000 increase in turnover. The Edinburgh club reported a 24 per cent rise in gate receipts on their balance sheet for the year ending 30 June, 2018. In a year in which Esmael Goncalves and Jamie Walker left Gorgie, a £400,000 gain from player sales was also included.
Despite investing heavily in the redevelopment of Tynecastle Park – a project which will cost £18m when completed – Hearts have managed to maintain encouraging financial figures under the stewardship of owner Ann Budge.
Net assets now total £14.7m, turnover is up from £11.3m to £12.1m, plus there was an eight per cent increase in income from commercial activities during the 12-month period.
Unnamed benefactors contributed £2m during the year, taking their total contribution towards stadium work to £4.5m. The accounts also show a further £1m income from what is reported as an “exceptional donation towards player costs”.
All of the above resulted in Hearts securing a net profit of £1.8m compared to last year’s £2.3m profit. The club have also drawn down £1.7m of a £1.75m loan facility made available by one of their directors.
Budge had earlier confirmed that Tynecastle’s redevelopment will reach a total of £18m as she seeks to create “some-
ANN BUDGE
thing special” with the stadium regeneration. Foundation of Hearts have contributed £3m to that project and continue to provide £1.4m a year in funding for the club through 8,000 monthly subscribers.
In her statement provided with the annual accounts, Budge wrote: “We received an exceptional £1m donation towards player costs from our benefactors. This allowed us to enhance our playing budget for the year and consequently our staff costs increased considerably.
In addition, our operating charges increased from £5.4m to £6.1m, matching the trend of the increase in our turnover.”
She added: “Financial Year 2017/18 saw us continue on our journey to re-establish Hearts as a major force within Scottish football. Our investments continued, both on and off the field, in line with our long-term strategic objectives. Once again, we were faced with a number of different challenges and once again, we met these challenges head on. “By so doing, we managed to deliver a very credible financial performance, while at the same time, making great strides forward in terms of rebuilding our infrastructure.”
She summed up by saying: “The company’s balance sheet at June 30, 2018, remains strong with net assets of £14.7m. At year end, approximately £17.7m of stadium redevelopment costs had been capitalised.
“Our cash outflow during the year was £5.3m. This arose largely as a result of payments made in connection with the Tynecastle Redevelopment Project, offset by exceptional donations received from our benefactors; the drawdown of the additional loan facilities secured during the year and the sale of players, in particular Jamie Walker to Wigan and Esmael Goncalves to Pakhtakor.
“We also continued to benefit from our ongoing partnership with Save the Children and the continuing support of the Foundation of Hearts. The Foundation have now completed their £3m contribution to the Tynecastle Redevelopment Project and have commenced repayment of the senior loan to Bidco (1874) Limited.
“In summary, it was a demanding year both on and off the pitch but we faced and overcame the challenges by sticking to our values and to our long-term plan. As a business we are in good shape; growing revenues and managing costs. The future looks bright indeed.
“Finally, the board would like to express its thanks to the employees, players, supporters, shareholders and other associates, including sponsors, commercial and community partners, for their unwavering support.”
“Financial Year 2017/18 saw us continue on our journey to re-establish Hearts as a major force within Scottish football”