Gate receipts are no longer vital to elite
THE Premier League’s broadcast deal is so great that half the clubs would have made a pre-tax profit even if they played in empty grounds.
BBC research has shown just how much the record £8.3bn of TV revenue has boosted the coffers of top-flight teams.
So great are the figures that 10 clubs in the 2016-17 campaign – the first benefiting from the current broadcast deal – would have recorded pre-tax profits even with match-day incomes stripped away.
Furthermore, match-day income represented less than 20p in every £1 that 18 Premier League clubs earned during that campaign.
Dr Rob Wilson, a sport finance specialist at Sheffield Hallam University, said: “That is when the focus really went toward generating TV money rather than match-day ticket receipts.
“The revenue structures of those clubs are fairly well there to stay now.
“When you get a £120m payout from the Premier League for kicking a ball around, you can play in an empty stadium if you need to.”
Football Supporters’ Federation chair Malcolm Clarke said: “I’d say match-going fans are the most important element. Players and managers come and go, but we are always there.
“The reason that they can get lucrative TV deals is because the product shows the crowd, the noise, the away fans and the atmosphere – it is all part of it.”
He continued: “How boring would it be to watch a Premier League game in an empty stadium?” BARNSLEY have been applauded for reaching out to one of the club’s fans who spoke about his battles with depression and anxiety on social media.
Chief executive Gauthier Ganaye wrote a letter to Chris Ryder and gave details of the Mind charity while also inviting the lifelong fan to “swing by any time”.
The English Football League partnered with Mind for the 2018-19 season and the governing body described the South Yorkshire club’s actions as “a touch of class”, while former England international Peter Reid also commented: “Class!”
Ryder posted a picture of the letter on Twitter with the caption saying: “best football club in the world”, which received over 16,000 retweets and 75,000 likes by Tuesday evening, while over 1,000 replies praised Barnsley’s goodwill gesture.
The letter read: ““I’ve noticed through social media that you’ve had a bit of a hard time recently, I’m not sure what it is but I hope everything improves for you as soon as possible. You’ve been a fan of the club for many years and always supported us, so we want you to know that if the favour needs returning and we need to support you, please do let us know.
“You are welcome to swing by any time. My office door is always open and we’ve finally got a new coffee machine, a huge thanks to Alfie Mawson for that! (Barnsley received a sell-on fee after the defender’s move from Swansea to West Ham this summer).
“Keep supporting the Reds, Chris. We’ll keep supporting you.”