By David Owen
May 8 – The money machine that is Manchester United have knocked arch-rivals Liverpool off the top of Insideworldfootball’s Premier League of profits listing for 2015-16.
The impact of a new kit deal with Adidas combined with reduced finance costs as a consequence of a refinancing of United’s sizeable debt triggered a turnaround in the Old Trafford club’s financial fortunes.
At the same time, Liverpool fell back into the red, notwithstanding the lucrative sale of Raheem Sterling to Manchester City.
Overall, this was a year when the combined financial performance of the 20 Premier League clubs fell back sharply into negative territory, after two years of hefty profits. The aggregate pre-tax loss reached £94.5 million, a swing of more than £200 million from the combined profit of £126.9 million registered last time.
The new TV deals should ensure that the clubs in this season’s Premier League return to the black, perhaps even challenging the record aggregate profit of £187 million achieved in 2013-14.
An interesting feature of the new table is the high correlation between financial and footballing success – and to some extent failure.
The four top-performing clubs in profit terms all finished in the top five in the league, including Leicester City, the surprise 2015-16 league champions. Similarly, now second-tier Aston Villa brought up the rear both in profit terms and on the pitch.
In spite of the overall financial deterioration, all three clubs promoted to the Premier League in 2014-15 – Bournemouth, Watford and Norwich City – managed to turn a profit, indicating that it takes some time before cost inflation catches up with the massive jump in broadcasting revenues that top-tier
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