Leicester City Post Record Losses of £92.5m

[Daggers]

People wanting Top to sell up to a Middle East nation exemplifies the short-sighted, easily pleased nature of our fan base.

 

If we were serious about wanting to advance then we'd be focussing all our efforts on sorting out a takeover by a different galactic race. Has anyone explored the possibility of obtaining finance from the Andromeda Galaxy or Messier 63?

 

No. No they haven't.

 

It's pathetic.

[David Lowe]

You either have a huge rise in wages through new contracts to keep your best players or you sell players. Neither is a great option so I suppose the trick is to mix sales with new contracts which we did well for a while. 

[CosbehFox]

1 hour ago, Simoken said:

sell the club to a rich saudi prince. its time to move on. sorry top

The juxtaposition of being a Rodgers 4ever and selling ourselves to a rotten state is quite something 

[Claridge]

1 hour ago, Pete52 said:

Like writing off £200m worth of debt and spending roughly £35m in January to help us avoid relegation, all whilst recently having built a state of the art training facility and pressing on with stadium expansion plans. 
 

But yes, financially it’s up for debate what the owners do. 

Yea but what about the Romans

[CosbehFox]

Did occur to though that given the overtime being contracted by ticket office and stewards on their away trip jollies now plus the overkill security down there now for home games.
 

A nine figure loss might be possible next season. 

[String fellow]

1 hour ago, Daggers said:

People wanting Top to sell up to a Middle East nation exemplifies the short-sighted, easily pleased nature of our fan base.

 

If we were serious about wanting to advance then we'd be focussing all our efforts on sorting out a takeover by a different galactic race. Has anyone explored the possibility of obtaining finance from the Andromeda Galaxy or Messier 63?

 

No. No they haven't.

 

It's pathetic.

Yes they have - me! Considering that M31 is about 2 million light years from Earth and M63 is more than 10 times further away, obtaining finance from either one of those two galaxies would take far too long to help with City's current plight.  

[Ric Flair]

2 hours ago, Simoken said:

theres everything wrong with it when your commercial value is POOR in comparison to the likes of Dortmond/ A madrid who are massive clubs

Plenty of smaller clubs than those two have repeatedly challenged for European titles and domestically challenge their top 6. Villareal being e perfect example.

 

So much money is wasted in the PL and it's a vicious circle but the model of buying young talented players, having an immense academy and selling high selectively is the only way to compete. Creating the commercial revenue the big 6 does takes decades of success to do, if at all possible.

[Terraloon]

No matter how you look at the numbers it’s abundantly clear that things have to change and change fast.

 

The current trading year will be done and dusted in less than 3 months and whilst there will be a decent player trading profit ( circa £50 million) and possibly a few quid saved in respect of wages the money earned from playing in the two EL competitions and based on current league position there is possibility that some £30 million will not be incoming in 22/23.

 

The cost of inflation will impact and whilst I don’t see the 21/22 numbers being matched I can’t see them being less than £60-£70 million in 22/23.

 

The clear inference is that there is going to have to be a significant number of departures at seasons end. Some will walk on a free. Or those in the last year( such as Maddison ) might just simply say nope I will see out the last year because barring a significant carrier changing injury I can make a mountain of extra money as part of deal at a top club)

 

Irrespective of who or how they leave they will have to be replaced. That will come at a cost of course but  it will also be a gamble be it players stepping up, Players arriving on a Bosman or players coming from the academy.

 

The real trouble isn’t that the 21/22 numbers are horrific it’s the fact that they are on  the back of several years of terrible financial results and irrespective of the current debt to equity the accumulated losses will at some point catch up when the PL match then against their profit and sustainability test.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[An Away Move]

I'm not sure if this has been covered - probably has - but the big factor as I see it is when our club or clubs like ours have success and begin to qualify for Europe consistently - in order to try and maintain the league position and compete in cups you need to enlarge the squad (with quality too), which drives up costs. The moment a club such as ours then has a blip and does not qualify for Europe you then have a bloated squad which is unaffordable and FFP becomes an issue. I've been told our owners are no stranger to casinos and like to gamble. They gambled with us in 2021 when we just fell short of CL qualification again. To try and maintain the push we kept players we should have sold for our business model. You can understand this   gamble though. We were so close to breaking the cartel and getting to the Champion's League with all the increased revenue that would bring in. Unfortunately we are now like Icarus. We flew very close to the sun, didn't;t quite make it and are now falling to earth. Lets hope we land just above the floor of the Premier League and not crash into the Championship.

[Daggers]

2 hours ago, String fellow said:

Yes they have - me! Considering that M31 is about 2 million light years from Earth and M63 is more than 10 times further away, obtaining finance from either one of those two galaxies would take far too long to help with City's current plight.  

That’s the sort of negative mindset that’s got us into this mess. 
 

Need I mention folding space-time? Yes, I went there. I’ve no shame. 

[Clever Fox]

10 hours ago, Babylon said:

Nobody knows what he earns. 

Whatever it is it's too much given what we are getting in return in terms of performances.

 

The annoying thing is he has the ability but not the drive or dedication to take it to the next level. 

 

We can't afford to get Transfers wrong at least not to the numbers we have recently.

 

We need to get in young hungry players who are on the way up and want to suceed. There's plenty of them out there.

[Gamble92]

7 hours ago, David Lowe said:

This pretty much proves my theory that it is impossible for a club of our size to be competing at the top for a long period. No club has done it or will do it in the foreseeable future. Comments about lack of ambition are ridiculous, it’s just about being realistic. As soon as you hit the top 7 you need a bigger squad to cope with Europe and because of the success, current players and new additions will be put on higher wages. I have no doubt that Fulham, Brentford or Brighton will end up with the same problem if they get into Europe or hang around the top half for long.

If the signings had been better it wouldn't have been impossible at all. A challenge of course, but more than doable.

 

I actually think we had the best chance in modern times of being the club that consistently breaks the top 6. 

 

All that was undone last summer.

[Foxy-Lady]

10 hours ago, alanf0x said:

I know a lot of clubs from the midlands that would swap places with us!! 

Funny you should say that as there's a pretty fair chance that either Coventry or West Brom might well be swapping places with us very soon...!  

[Simoken]

14 hours ago, Ric Flair said:

Plenty of smaller clubs than those two have repeatedly challenged for European titles and domestically challenge their top 6. Villareal being e perfect example.

 

So much money is wasted in the PL and it's a vicious circle but the model of buying young talented players, having an immense academy and selling high selectively is the only way to compete. Creating the commercial revenue the big 6 does takes decades of success to do, if at all possible.

that model may work in a lesser league but i dont see it being a sustainable model in the PL anymore for the near or longer future, Think we are entering a new era of impatient business and owners trying to rush their way up the top, and now even the Newcastles and maybe forest.... dare i say could be the next club considering the amount they have pumped into it this season. the whole Man city mess 'fingers crossed' is a red flag for the overheads and the masses moving forward but as per usual followed by a slap on the wrist without any real change, i expect that greed will win again in sport. I honestly can see this model taking us down, theres soo much risk than reward and we have seen it this season especially. But most blame Rodgers and ignore the bigger picture, its not always the managers fault.

Edited 9 March 2023 by Simoken

[String fellow]

12 hours ago, Daggers said:

That’s the sort of negative mindset that’s got us into this mess. 
 

Need I mention folding space-time? Yes, I went there. I’ve no shame. 

I'm the very essence of mindset negativity! My glass is always half-empty, because, as my boss used to say, life's a bitch and then you die. Having said that, as regards City's current financial state, my thinking is that anyone who loses sleep over such an issue is very lucky that they don't have anything more important in life to worry about.

[Babylon]

19 hours ago, Smudge said:

Maybe, but he is ultimately responsible for all departments under him, including Head of Recruitment. Someone has to be accountable, as DOF he is man in charge. Seems to me Rudkin has a lot to answer for.

Well personally I don't subscribe to the it's the person at the top that take all the responsibility stuff, otherwise it's Top... and clearly if the scouts pick duffers it's not really his problem. We had a duff transfer window under Vichai also. 

[Dahnsouff]

1 hour ago, Simoken said:

that model may work in a lesser league but i dont see it being a sustainable model in the PL anymore for the near or longer future, Think we are entering a new era of impatient business and owners trying to rush their way up the top, and now even the Newcastles and maybe forest.... dare i say could be the next club considering the amount they have pumped into it this season. the whole Man city mess 'fingers crossed' is a red flag for the overheads and the masses moving forward but as per usual followed by a slap on the wrist without any real change, i expect that greed will win again in sport. I honestly can see this model taking us down, theres soo much risk than reward and we have seen it this season especially. But most blame Rodgers and ignore the bigger picture, its not always the managers fault.

I am not going to be comment on the bit in bold, as I feel it risks derailing what is a good post, patience and building is barely acceptable any more. People may state Brighton to refute this, but already they are targetted by the more monied clubs and a single refusal Caciedo does not change that, he is essentially their Mahrez and player power will out over the coming seasons. Still believe the plans for the culling of smaller club ambition began after 15/16, the simplest way to do it was always to price out the competition, and these monied clubs are not competing against each other really as they all suckle from the same teat, and getting no more in the pen to squabble for their share is far more important.

[filbertway]

1 hour ago, Simoken said:

that model may work in a lesser league but i dont see it being a sustainable model in the PL anymore for the near or longer future, Think we are entering a new era of impatient business and owners trying to rush their way up the top, and now even the Newcastles and maybe forest.... dare i say could be the next club considering the amount they have pumped into it this season. the whole Man city mess 'fingers crossed' is a red flag for the overheads and the masses moving forward but as per usual followed by a slap on the wrist without any real change, i expect that greed will win again in sport. I honestly can see this model taking us down, theres soo much risk than reward and we have seen it this season especially. But most blame Rodgers and ignore the bigger picture, its not always the managers fault.

I'm not really laughing at this post. But I can't work out if you're taking the piss with the Rodgers love or not

 

Always great entertainment though haha.

[Simoken]

7 minutes ago, filbertway said:

I'm not really laughing at this post. But I can't work out if you're taking the piss with the Rodgers love or not

 

Always great entertainment though haha.

in all fairness/respect to your comment... haha i do like to play the pro Rodgers troll, but alot dont take me seriously.

 

[David Lowe]

11 hours ago, Gamble92 said:

If the signings had been better it wouldn't have been impossible at all. A challenge of course, but more than doable.

 

I actually think we had the best chance in modern times of being the club that consistently breaks the top 6. 

 

All that was undone last summer.

Yes the signings could have been better but every club gets some right and some wrong. At our level of spending it is difficult to keep getting it right. Chelsea and Man Utd in particular have spent huge sums on some flops but in the long run they will get away with it.

[filbertway]

4 minutes ago, Simoken said:

in all fairness/respect to your comment... haha i do like to play the pro Rodgers troll, but alot dont take me seriously.

 

Anyway, never stop. I enjoy it immensely mate

 

[davieG]

14 minutes ago, David Lowe said:

Yes the signings could have been better but every club gets some right and some wrong. At our level of spending it is difficult to keep getting it right. Chelsea and Man Utd in particular have spent huge sums on some flops but in the long run they will get away with it.

3 out 3 is not some right and some wrong. Even if they eventually make it taking too long with our restraints is as good as failing.

[davieG]

 

 

1. 'It is very, very expensive to try and break into the top four'published at 11:03

   Football finance expert Kieran Maguire claims Leicester are paying the price for attempts to break into the top six of the Premier League.

   This comes following the news of £92.5m pre-tax losses for the year up to 31 May 2022 which is an increase of £61.3m compared to the previous 12 months.

   The Foxes crucially narrowly missed out on Champions League football in back-to-back seasons in 2019-20 and 2020-2021, finishing fifth.

   "It is very, very expensive to try and break into the top four," Maguire told the When You’re Smiling podcast.

   "We talk about the 'big six' - those clubs have on average a £300m advantage over Leicester at the start of the season - due to having bigger commercial deals and stadiums. If Leicester are trying to compete then it is expensive and risky. When I talk to people in the game they say Leicester have one of the better recruitment models in the Premier League.

   "Leicester have been punching above their weight for the last six to seven years and eventually gravity catches up with you."

   The Foxes currently sit 15th in the league, only two points clear of the relegation zone.

   He added: "What we see with Leicester is what we see with many clubs, some clubs are just there to make money - the owners aren’t interested in football it is just merely a form of entertainment.

   "The Leicester owners have put a lot of money in, and the fact they have written off £194m since the end of the year indicates that they are continuing to be here for the long haul.

   "They do have the strategy of committing themselves to extending the stadium, which is good if we move to a new form of Financial Fair Play, which I anticipate to come in over the next year or two. This will be linking wages to revenues and given that is an area Leicester need to address, expanding the stadium with more hospitality deals on top of that is a smart way forward."

   Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

[Gamble92]

56 minutes ago, David Lowe said:

Yes the signings could have been better but every club gets some right and some wrong. At our level of spending it is difficult to keep getting it right. Chelsea and Man Utd in particular have spent huge sums on some flops but in the long run they will get away with it.

It's true that we can't afford to have a bad window and they can afford many and still at worst be about 7th.

 

But it's fair to say it was a monumental failure to sign Soumare and Bertrand etc and not qualify for Europe. They're both on Brendan yet he's escaped pretty much all blame outside our fanbase. We are now being told by pundits that we have been spoilt. 

 

I'm well aware that we have had incredible success but we could have made this era last much longer. It's really sad the way it's been handled.

[An Away Move]

12 hours ago, Gamble92 said:

If the signings had been better it wouldn't have been impossible at all. A challenge of course, but more than doable.

 

I actually think we had the best chance in modern times of being the club that consistently breaks the top 6. 

 

All that was undone last summer.

IMO we were one Perez party away from doing it. He was also inches away from a winner at Chelsea away, which would have been enough.