Liverpool announce record turnover & £42m pre-tax profit in latest accounts

Liverpool have announced a pre-tax profit of £42 million ($54m) in its latest annual financial accounts.

The Reds’ success on the field is being matched off it, with a record turnover of £533m ($688m) also confirmed for the year ending May 2019.

That figure was boosted by the club’s second-placed finish in the Premier League last season, as well as the lucrative new UEFA Champions League broadcast deal and a series of new commercial partnerships.

The period also saw unprecedented investment in the club's playing squad. Liverpool spent £223m ($288m) in that regard, with Alisson Becker, Naby Keita, Fabinho and Xherdan Shaqiri all joining the club during the accounting period. The Reds also handed out long-term contracts to no fewer than 11 first-team players, including Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and club captain Jordan Henderson.

They were also able to press ahead with their new £50m ($65m) training facility in Kirkby, with work on the state-of-the-art complex set to be completed in June, in time for Jurgen Klopp and his team to move in for pre-season training.

The latest accounts show that all three major revenue streams have risen sharply, with media revenue increasing by £41m to £261m ($337m), commercial revenue up by £34m to £188m ($243) and match revenue increasing by £3.5m to £84m ($108m). 

Liverpool's wage bill also, climbed from £263m ($339m) in 2017-18 to £310m ($400m) in 2018-19. It remains at around 58% of the club's turnover.

Crucially, though, the club has been able to increase its profits while significantly reducing the debt on its books.

Their net bank debt has been cut from £46m to just £12m ($15m), while their intercompany debt, which relates to a loan club owners Fenway Sports Group (FSG) took out to finance the building of Anfield's new Main Stand, is down from £100m to £79m ($102m). Liverpool plan to use their existing credit facilities to finance their proposed £60m ($77m) redevelopment of the Anfield Road stand, with no need for a second loan from FSG. 

Liverpool maintained seventh place in the Deloitte Football Money League, which was released in January, having moved up two places the previous year.

Commercially, the soon-to-be Premier League champions continue to grow. Nine new partners, including AXA, Intel, Levi Strauss, Lavazza, Verbier, Tigerwit, NH Doods, PB Bintang and Nord VPN, joined the club in the year up until May 2019, while the club's retail team recorded that footfall into official LFC stores worldwide surpassed 1m for the first time.

The club’s international expansion plans have also grown with a new retail partner announced in Malaysia, club shop opened in Thailand and new selling channels on Amazon in USA, Canada and Germany. E-commerce orders, the club say, were shipped to over a record 190 countries world-wide.

The club’s global social media followers increased by 26 percent to nearly 70m. LFC’s official YouTube channel reached 2.5m subscribers and is the most followed club in the Premier League. Twitter also increased by 11 percent to 13.5m and reached 59m total engagements during the 2018-19 period – 6m more than any other Premier League club.

Andy Hughes, Liverpool’s chief operating officer, said: “This continued strengthening of the underlying financial sustainability of the club is enabling us to make significant investments both in player recruitment and infrastructure.

“Being able to reinvest over £220m on players during this financial period is a result of a successful business strategy, particularly the significant uplift in commercial revenues.

“The cost of football however does continue to rise in transfers and associated fees but what’s critical for us is the consistency of our financial position, enabling us to live within our means and continue to run a sustainable football club.”

Hughes added: “What we’re seeing is sustained growth across all areas of the club which is aligned to the recent performance on the pitch. Since this reporting period we have continued to reinvest in the club’s infrastructure, and we look forward to the opening of our new training base at Kirkby ahead of the new season which will provide first class facilities for our players and staff.

“We have also just completed a second phase consultation on a proposed expansion of the Anfield Road Stand which could see an increase in the stadium’s capacity, giving even more supporters the opportunity to see the team. There is more work to do and, importantly, we will continue our dialogue with all key stakeholders including local residents, businesses and community groups.

“These financial results and this sustained period of solid growth is testament to our ownership, Fenway Sport Group, who continue to support the club’s ambitions and continue to reinvest revenues both in strengthen the playing squad and the club’s infrastructure to build for the future.”

Last year, Liverpool recorded a pre-tax profit of £125m ($161m), although that figure was helped significantly by the sale of Philippe Coutinho to Barcelona.

The Reds’ Champions League success last season, though, plus their remarkable Premier League campaign this time around and a lucrative new five-year kit deal with sportswear giants Nike, means their off-field growth is only likely to continue. It is anticipated that they will soon surpass Manchester United, currently the Premier League's No.1 club, in terms of revenue. 

In just about every way imaginable, Liverpool Football Club is thriving right now.