Newcastle United broke the record for the annual wage cost in the history of the English Football League (EFL) during their season in the Championship as the club’s accounts are revealed for up until June 2017.
The Magpies unveiled the financial sheet, which details the club’s monetary status up until the end of the 2016/17 campaign, via their official website, with managing director Lee Charnley stating that the entire club had taken a “financial gamble on securing immediate promotion”.
It was confirmed that the north east side had suffered a huge £90.9million pre-tax loss, with a deficit of £8.3million in terms of cash in the club, while wages, including bonuses and add-ons, totalled £112.2million.
The reveal highlights the club’s plans to ensure a return to the top flight at the first time of asking, a feat which they achieved by scraping their way to the Championship title.
OPINION
Newcastle seem to be have been holding off for as long as possible with the release of their official numbers and it clear to see why that has been the case. The amount of loss is simply staggering and the thought of what might have happened had they not secured automatic promotion back to the Premier League is not worth thinking about. The fact they kept a fair few of their players from the top flight when dropping into the second tier would not have helped but at the end of the day, they are back fighting with the big boys, and with a 10th placed finish in the season just gone, have given a pretty good account of themselves. The money coming in from that will also help balance the books.