Post by QPR Report on Apr 14, 2010 6:28:49 GMT
Shame about Chelsea probably winning the Double!
The Times/Oliver Kay
Chelsea finances going wrong way for Roman Abramovich
Roman Abramovich saw the value of Chelsea’s playing squad drop by £40 million in the last financial year while the club’s wage bill rose to £142.6 million, the highest such figure in English football history.
In Chelsea’s accounts for the financial year ending June 30 last year, which were submitted to Companies House last week, the board has valued its squad at £247.5 million, a theoretical calculation based on estimates of players’ value in the transfer market.
That represents a significant drop from the previous figure of £287.1 million and from the corresponding figures for the previous two years, reflecting Abramovich’s concerns about an ageing squad that, despite the promise of success on the pitch this season, is diminishing in value while continuing to command the highest salaries in the country.
Chelsea did not reveal these figures when announcing their financial results in December, when a pre-tax loss of £47 million was portrayed as a success in comparison with previous years, but they are known to have become a source of increasing concern for Abramovich, who had hoped that the club would achieve self-sufficiency this year.
Abramovich is known to have expressed misgivings behind the scenes in recent weeks about the size of the club’s wage bill, which is certain to have risen again over the course of this season after new contracts for John Terry and others, and the diminishing “resale value” among his squad.
In particular, Abramovich is concerned that, if the club were to look to raise transfer funds by selling players, the optimum time to cash in has passed in the majority of cases, even though they are set to remain on highly lucrative long-term contracts well into their 30s.
The owner’s desire to make Chelsea self-sufficient is one reason behind the impasse in contract negotiations with Michael Ballack, 33, and the injury-prone Joe Cole, who will be allowed to leave on free transfers if no agreement is reached by the end of June.
Chelsea’s overall wage bill for the last financial year was £155.2 million, but that includes “exceptional items” of £12.6 million relating to termination payments made to Luiz Felipe Scolari, the former manager, and his backroom staff when they were dismissed in February 2009.
The previous year’s figure was £160.6 million, but that was inflated by termination payments of £23.1 million to José Mourinho, Avram Grant and other members of the coaching staff. It means that the club have paid a total of £35.7 million in compensation to coaches whose contracts have been terminated over the past two financial years.
• Simon Fuller has resigned as a director of Brand Beckham, the company that handles David Beckham’s earnings from Los Angeles Galaxy and the player’s joint deals with his wife. Fuller, the Spice Girls’ manager, was hired by the couple in 2003. His former company, 19 Entertainment, which was bought by CKX in 2005, owns a 33 per cent stake in Brand Beckham but it is believed that Fuller will bring the couple under his new company, XIX Entertainment. A spokesman for the Beckhams said: “This is purely an administrative move. Simon Fuller continues to work closely with David and Victoria now and in the future.”
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/chelsea/article7096683.ece
The Times/Oliver Kay
Chelsea finances going wrong way for Roman Abramovich
Roman Abramovich saw the value of Chelsea’s playing squad drop by £40 million in the last financial year while the club’s wage bill rose to £142.6 million, the highest such figure in English football history.
In Chelsea’s accounts for the financial year ending June 30 last year, which were submitted to Companies House last week, the board has valued its squad at £247.5 million, a theoretical calculation based on estimates of players’ value in the transfer market.
That represents a significant drop from the previous figure of £287.1 million and from the corresponding figures for the previous two years, reflecting Abramovich’s concerns about an ageing squad that, despite the promise of success on the pitch this season, is diminishing in value while continuing to command the highest salaries in the country.
Chelsea did not reveal these figures when announcing their financial results in December, when a pre-tax loss of £47 million was portrayed as a success in comparison with previous years, but they are known to have become a source of increasing concern for Abramovich, who had hoped that the club would achieve self-sufficiency this year.
Abramovich is known to have expressed misgivings behind the scenes in recent weeks about the size of the club’s wage bill, which is certain to have risen again over the course of this season after new contracts for John Terry and others, and the diminishing “resale value” among his squad.
In particular, Abramovich is concerned that, if the club were to look to raise transfer funds by selling players, the optimum time to cash in has passed in the majority of cases, even though they are set to remain on highly lucrative long-term contracts well into their 30s.
The owner’s desire to make Chelsea self-sufficient is one reason behind the impasse in contract negotiations with Michael Ballack, 33, and the injury-prone Joe Cole, who will be allowed to leave on free transfers if no agreement is reached by the end of June.
Chelsea’s overall wage bill for the last financial year was £155.2 million, but that includes “exceptional items” of £12.6 million relating to termination payments made to Luiz Felipe Scolari, the former manager, and his backroom staff when they were dismissed in February 2009.
The previous year’s figure was £160.6 million, but that was inflated by termination payments of £23.1 million to José Mourinho, Avram Grant and other members of the coaching staff. It means that the club have paid a total of £35.7 million in compensation to coaches whose contracts have been terminated over the past two financial years.
• Simon Fuller has resigned as a director of Brand Beckham, the company that handles David Beckham’s earnings from Los Angeles Galaxy and the player’s joint deals with his wife. Fuller, the Spice Girls’ manager, was hired by the couple in 2003. His former company, 19 Entertainment, which was bought by CKX in 2005, owns a 33 per cent stake in Brand Beckham but it is believed that Fuller will bring the couple under his new company, XIX Entertainment. A spokesman for the Beckhams said: “This is purely an administrative move. Simon Fuller continues to work closely with David and Victoria now and in the future.”
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premier_league/chelsea/article7096683.ece