The annual Deloitte Football Money League report was released this week and amid plenty of talk of the Financial Fair Play regulations there was some positive reading for City as they look to satisfy the criteria that is set to come into play.
Time is short this week unfortunately but I've outlined the most salient points below.
- City were the biggest climbers, up nine places to eleventh.
- The club recorded their highest ever revenues, increasing £38.1m to £125.1m. This was split between Matchday (20%), Commercial (37%) and Broadcasting (43%).
- Of this amount, commercial revenue doubled to £46.7m - the driver being the new deals with Umbro and Etihad, as well as other agreements with the likes of Etisalat and Aabar.
- The matchday revenue increased 17% to £24.4m despite the club not being in European competition (which they had been the previous season). This figure was driven in part by a 6% average in attendance over the season.
- Broadcasting revenue grew by £5.8m to £54m, £49.6m of which was from the Premier League.
Whilst an impressive performance, what it does show is how imperative Champions League qualification is, given that moving up just one place to crack the top ten would require a further revenue increase of over £40m. There is also no doubt that despite the increase in revenue, costs (wages, transfer fees etc) have also risen.
The link to the full report is here and if you haven't checked out the excellent Swiss Ramble's post on how City could break even, do take some time to read through it.