Blackpool's upcoming opponents Stoke City post eye-watering losses of £56m

Blackpool’s upcoming opponents Stoke City have recorded eye-watering losses of almost £56m for their last financial year.
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Football finance expert shares his view on Blackpool's latest accounts as Seasid...

Staggeringly, Stoke’s losses are actually DOWN from £87m the previous year - giving them a total deficit of £142m over the last two years.

It’s widely believed that Stoke, who Blackpool face at the bet365 Stadium on Saturday, are one of a handful of Championship sides currently risking Financial Fair Play sanctions.

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Stoke have been determined to stay within the rules, slashing the wage budget in recent seasons. It’s understood they’re in the black for transfer dealings since Michael O’Neill was appointed as manager in November 2019.

The likes of Bristol City and Middlesbrough have also been mentioned as clubs risking sanctions, while both Derby County and Reading have already been punished with points deductions.

Reading, who Blackpool beat 4-1 at Bloomfield Road last weekend, recently posted losses of £35.7m, down from £42m.

Clubs in the second tier must live under the profit and sustainability rules as laid out by the EFL.

The Seasiders head to the bet365 Stadium on SaturdayThe Seasiders head to the bet365 Stadium on Saturday
The Seasiders head to the bet365 Stadium on Saturday
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In short, clubs can record losses of up to £39m over three seasons - or £13m a year.

But it's never short or simple where this topic is concerned. The three-year cycle on which clubs are measured also takes into seasons in the Premier League where clubs are allowed to record losses of up to £35m every season.

There are also chunks of a club's spending that don't count towards FFP, like on an academy or infrastructure - and chunks that can be written off because they are attributed to Covid.

The cycle was also temporarily expanded to four years because of Covid, with two seasons taken on average.

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It is a delicate, tricky business and even accountants sitting with all the clubs' accounts in front of them would - and do - find it difficult to calculate who is sailing close to the wind.

The vast majority of the campaign was played behind closed doors due to the pandemic, which inevitably had a major impact on the club’s ticket sales.

Turnover, however, remained pretty stable at £5.4m, down ever so slightly from £5.5m the previous year.

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The accounts show gate receipts dropped from £1.1m to just £73,000 from the previous year, due to the absence of supporters.

The club still recouped £771,000 from season ticket sales, with a large number of supporters opting not to claim a refund to help assist the club. This figure stood at £1m for the previous year.

Bar and food sales predictably plummeted to just £2,000 from £328,000, but merchandise was up from £383,000 to £561,000.

One major positive for the club was the income it brought in from match streaming, as fans were able to watch all of their games via the iFollow platform. This rose from £45,000 to £579,000.

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The annual report also shows that wages and salaries for all club staff, including the players and coaching team, rose from £6m to £6.8m.

Amounts due to related parties, which is defined as someone with control, joint control or significant influence over the company, increased from £3.5m to £9m.