FC Barcelona posts a loss of 100 million euros and doubles its debt in the midst of a pandemic

0

FC Barcelona, ​​one of the richest in the world football clubrevealed the massive impact of the coronavirus pandemic on his business, posting a pre-tax loss of €100m last season while more than doubling his debt to €488m.

The Catalan club, which has experienced a leadership crisis in recent weeks after its star player Lionel Messi demanded to leave, said the annual revenue was 855 million euros last season. This is a decrease of 14% compared to the previous year, when it After than any other club in the world.

Barcelona, ​​one of the first elite European clubs to publish its financial results for the year covering the 2019-20 season, said on Monday it was hit by a coronavirus-induced shortfall of just over of 200 million euros.

Net debt as of June 30, 2020 was €488 million, more than double the €217 million a year earlier.

Commercial revenue fell 9% to 297 million euros as some sponsorship deals “at an advanced stage of negotiation before the pandemic” fell through as merchandise sales also fell.

Matchday revenue fell 24% to 162 million euros as spectators have been away since March. Broadcast revenue fell 17% to 249 million euros, partly due to the drop in the number of European matches due to the pandemic

The club have made €74m in savings, including through agreed pay cuts for players, saying they “have not been immune to the Covid-19 outbreak, but that its aftermath has had a massive effect on the entire sports industry.”

Weekly newsletter

Dashboard is the Financial Times’ must-have new weekly sports industry briefing, where you’ll find the best analysis of financial issues affecting clubs, franchises, owners, investors and media groups across the global industry. register here.

Andrea Agnelli, president of Italy’s Juventus and chairman of the powerful European Club Association, said last month that clubs across the continent face a €3.6bn shortfall over the next two years.

Barcelona have said they expect revenue to drop further to €791m this season, although that projection is based on a gradual return of spectators to their Camp Nou stadium in December.

It is unclear when Spanish authorities will allow fans to return to sporting events, with European countries taking different approaches on the matter.

In Germany, stadiums have been partially opened to fans watching top-flight Bundesliga matches but, in England, the UK government has said major sports grounds are likely to remain closed for the next six months following an outbreak of the virus.

Barcelona have also embarked on a redevelopment of their stadium, announcing a “new financing plan” to raise €815m for the project. Goldman Sachs will manage a new vehicle which will pay investors a portion of the additional revenue expected to be generated from the club’s ground extension, which is expected to open in 2024.

The club’s financial crisis comes as top executives, including president Josep Maria Bartomeu, have been called to resign.

In August, the team suffered a humiliating 8-2 loss to Germany’s Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, Europe’s top club competition, one of the worst defeats in its history. The club has failed to win the tournament since 2015.

In the fallout, the club decided to get rid of coaches and players. Messi, who demanded to leave in August, has opted to see out his contract at Barcelona, ​​which ends in June 2021, to avoid triggering a legal dispute, but remained highly critical of his leadership.

Share.

Comments are closed.