Soccer

Burnley warn of £50m loss due to suspension of English football


Burnley have underlined the dire financial consequences of the coronavirus crisis on the Premier League by announcing they stand to lose around £50m from the continued suspension of the season.

The club are one of the better-run outfits in England’s top flight and recorded a pre-tax profit for the third consecutive season for the year ending June 2019. Their wage bill of £87m represents 63% of turnover and is among the lowest in the Premier League.

In an unusual move aimed at being “transparent with supporters, staff and stakeholders”, however, Burnley have issued a statement detailing their predicted shortfall from the ongoing suspension of all football activities in England. The Premier League confirmed on Friday that the 2019-20 season “will only return when it is safe and appropriate to do so” and will only be resumed with the full support of the government. Burnley’s estimated losses of £50m, it believes, are half of what other Premier League clubs stand to lose this season.

“Burnley FC are set to lose around £5m in lost revenue from the remaining home games which in the event that the season finishes would be unlikely to be recouped owing to the likely prospect of these fixtures being played behind closed doors,” the club said.

“In addition, the Clarets face missing out on cash payments from the Premier League of up to £45m in broadcasting revenue and other items if the season is not finished. It is believed that other clubs could be looking at up to a £100m shortfall.”

A week ago Mike Garlick, the Burnley chairman, spoke of maintaining the club’s financial sustainability “for generations to come” when announcing its latest set of healthy accounts for 2018-19. But on Saturday he warned: “It’s a completely unprecedented situation that we and other Premier League clubs face and which we could not have foreseen in any way only just a few weeks ago.

“It’s now not just about Burnley or any other individual club anymore, it’s about the whole football ecosystem from the Premier League downwards and all the other businesses and communities that feed from that ecosystem. As a club, as fans, as staff members and as a town we are all in this together and I’m sure we can get through this by sticking together and helping each other in every way possible in these tough times.”

Demand for Burnley’s foodbank service has quadrupled over the past two weeks, the club has also announced.



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