The FC Barcelona Board of Directors met today in an extraordinary session to approve the closure of accounts for the 2023/24 fiscal year and the projected budget for the 2024/25 season, both of which will need to be approved by the club’s delegate members at the Ordinary General Assembly. During the meeting, FC Barcelona President Joan Laporta wished to stress that the club has managed to halt the economic decline of recent years and confirmed the forecast of positive ordinary profits (€12 million), as reported at the meeting of the Barça Senate on June 12th and in his press conference of September 3rd.
Key highlights from the 2023/2024 fiscal year:
· New all-time sponsorship revenue record of more than €210 million.
· Record turnover of the merchandising subsidiary, BLM, of nearly €110 million, a 72% increase on 2018.
· Record profits from player transfers. The departures of Dembélé, Kessie, Nico, Abde, Chadi and Marc Guiu amounted to over €80 million. Note that player transfer profits are only recorded when the sale price exceeds the player’s book value.
· €170 million reduction in payroll, as announced at the beginning of last season from €670 million to just over €500 million. This brings the club back within UEFA’s recommended ratios (payroll over recurring income between 55% and 70%) while maintaining competitive performance (reaching the Champions League quarter-finals), rejuvenating the team, and structuring the squad with market-level salaries.
· Emphasis on efficient management of time at Montjuïc stay. The club implemented a strict policy of reviewing non-sporting expenses, limiting non-essential operational costs necessary for the organization to function. This plan has been reviewed by LaLiga.
· Playing at the Estadi Olímpic resulted in a reduction in annual ordinary revenue of over €100 million. The club has offset this loss by bringing forward the redevelopment of Spotify Camp Nou as much as possible.
· Adjusted deficits of the other sports sections to bring these in line with the club’s financial situation, without compromising sports competitiveness. Basketball has reduced its deficit to historic lows (-€10 million), and the women’s team has achieved profits (€0.6 million) while winning the UWCL.
· Investment restraint policy, whereby the club significantly reduced the total investments compared to the average of recent years.
· The sum of these factors contributed to a positive ordinary result of €12 million, thus fulfilling the 2023/24 budget target for the ordinary section. This result serves as the foundation to restore positive cash flows, enabling the club to meet both current and historic payments, make necessary sporting and non-sporting investments, and place it in the optimal position to reduce the debt once the new Spotify Camp Nou is fully operational.
· As for extraordinary results, the club has recorded a write-off of certain receivables related to the actions of Bridgeburg Invest, S.L. due to non-payment by some of the participating investors. Pursuant to accounting principles, the club must record this potential default as a precaution, notwithstanding under any circumstances the right to collect the amount in the future or take the necessary actions. The amount recognized as an extraordinary expense totals €141 million before taxes. The club believes there are sufficient grounds for the current valuation of the company and remains confident in its future viability and capacities, with a business plan in place that should generate recurring revenue in the near future.
· Therefore, and despite the positive ordinary result, the club closes the 2023/24 consolidated accounts with a net result of -€91 million.
Key highlights from the 2024/2025 budget:
· The men’s first team will continue to play at the Estadi Olímpic for the first half of the season, with the goal of returning to a partially opened Spotify Camp Nou for the second half. Lower recurring revenue from stadium operations is expected during the redevelopment of Spotify Camp Nou, with a progressive recovery of stadium revenue once the team returns.
· The club is acting cautiously with regard to the new UCL format, budgeting for similar amounts as in previous seasons (based on comparable sporting performance), but expects a potential improvement in income from broadcasting rights.
· Sponsorship revenue is expected to increase significantly, reaching a total of over €250 million.
· The club expects continued growth in physical and e-commerce sales, forecasting over €125 million in revenue, representing double-digit growth on the previous year.
· The conservative investment policy will be maintained and adapted to the club’s current financial situation, focusing on development of players within the club itself and occasional investment in outstanding players from outside.
· The projected payroll for the 2024/25 season remains stable at approximately €500 million.
· The club expects player transfer profits to be similar to the usual average, reinforcing its policy of profitable transfers and replacing players whose age or market value led to losses at the time of their departure.
The club forecasts a positive ordinary result of €5 million for the 2024/25 season, ensuring a positive EBITDA rating, which will lay the foundations for the 2025/26 season, when the new structure for generating revenue out of the redeveloped Spotify Camp Nou will be fully operational
