January 8 – Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich poured £247 million into the club last season as the club recorded an overall loss of £96.6 million according to latest accounts.
Chelsea made a New Year’s Eve statement on its website to disclose a hefty loss for the corporate entity Chelsea FC plc to the year ended June 30, 2019, even though Abramovich kept pumping huge amounts into the club.
One of the major contributing factors for the losses is that the club paid out more than £26 million over the sacking of manager Antonio Conte in July 2018, the most expensive in English football history. Conte was dismissed with 12 months left on his contract.
The accounts reveal that Conte’s departure, along with his backroom staff and together with the associated legal costs, cost a staggering £26.6 million. Conte was replaced by Maurizio Sarri, who also left the club in the summer of 2019, one year into a three-year contract.
Another factor is that Chelsea’s wage bill increased by £41 million in 2019, despite not playing in the Champions League.
While turnover increased from £422.6 million to £423.6 million, Chelsea cited increased wages and reduced profit on player sales as the main reason for their £96m loss.
The accounts, published on Tuesday, read: “Exceptional items in the current year of £26.6m relate to changes in respect of the men’s team management and coaching staff, together with associated legal costs.”
The club has now spent £90 million in compensation to various sacked managers since Abramovich took charge in 2004. In all, nine have been fired during his tenure.
What is clear is that they are still dependent on their Russian oligarch’s fortune to compete at the top of the English Premier League.
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