Last season’s 6th place Premier League finish, as well as competing in the UEFA Europa League for the first time, has been hailed by Brighton and Hove Albion as a major contribution to record profits outlined in the club’s 2022-23 financial report.
As well as the successful Premier League campaign last year, The Seagulls also reached an FA Cup semi-final last season and are continuing on an upward trajectory under the leadership of manager Roberto De Zerbi.
Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive of Brighton, Paul Barber, commented: “The dream is to be regularly challenging for a European place and for silverware. We are very proud of Roberto, the work he and his staff have done, and of course the performance levels of our squad.
“As ever we are hugely grateful to Tony Bloom for his clear vision, his world class ownership of our club, and his ongoing financial support. Similarly, we are extremely fortunate to have a top quality board, who provide us with great stability and guidance; and top level staff in all areas of the club.”
Record Season led to Record Profits
For financial results ending on 30 June 2023, Brighton announced a record turnover of £204.5m for 2022-23, up 17% from the £174.5m achieved the prior year.
Another major financial success for the South Coast club was the £24.9m earned through other operating income, up a staggering 2,431% from last year’s figure of £985,000 in 2021-22.
Matchday revenue also increased to £24.6m, as the club noted that “matches are now selling out and the Women’s first team has seen an increase in demand too”.
Broadcasting income also increased from £126.2m to £155.2m, partly due to increased merit place income per place and also additional merit place income from the 6th place finish versus the prior year’s 9th place, alongside additional TV picks for the club.
Elsewhere, administrative and operational costs increased by 25.7%, operating profit before football costs and depreciation costs also increased by 31.4%. Football costs last season increased by 14.2% with a strong profit made on player trading results, which became a key growth driver for the club.
Sales to MacAllister, Cucurella & Bissouma rise profit margins
A club which has been hailed as one of the smartest in the transfer market, Brighton’s financial results revealed that it gained huge profit boosts from the sales of some of its players.
World Cup winner Alexis MacAllister left the club for Liverpool in June 2023 for a fee of £35m, left-back Marc Cucurella joined Chelsea for £62m in August 2022, and Yves Bissouma required a £25m fee to join Tottenham Hotspur in June 2022.
Brighton revealed that this led to a player trading increase of £88.6m profit, up 906% from the £8.8m profit it earned during the 2021-22 season.
It is also worth noting that the sale of Moises Caicedo to Chelsea last summer, which was a record £115m transfer fee for a player in the league’s history, was not accounted for in the financial results as it was past the 30 June 2023 deadline.
Profit & Sustainability Rules prove no issue for the club
Unlike a host of Premier League clubs who have been charged for breaking the Premier League’s Profit & Sustainability Rules (PSR), Brighton acknowledged that it has remained fully compliant with the guidelines.
The club noted that its operating profit or loss is adjusted for depreciation and allowable expenditure as it accounted for the investment into Brighton’s Category 1 academy.
Brighton announced that it complied with all PSR guidelines throughout the 2022-23 season and remains confident this will continue for the foreseeable future.
Future planning
Deputy Chairman Barber also revealed that Brighton has made a ‘substantial repayment’ for the first time since Chairman and Majority Owner Tony Bloom took out an interest free loan to the club in 2007.
Barber also revealed that due to the success of record profits, the club is aiming to use these funds to break ground on a new multi-million pound external fan zone which, subject to planning, aims to open in the summer of 2024.
He continued: “These accounts will of course catch the eye, because of the headline number. In a season when we made history on the pitch we took a huge step forward in terms of the club’s long-held aim of becoming more sustainable and less reliant on Tony Bloom’s incredibly generous levels of investment.
“We now have a very solid platform to continue to make significant progress on the pitch, by investing in our squad, and off the pitch by making the match day experience even more enjoyable for our supporters, all of which we believe will help us to continue to grow.
“Once again, on behalf of everyone connected to the club, I would like to thank Tony for his incredible and ongoing commitment.”
