Celtic’s results mirror on-pitch showing

GLASGOW Celtic’s financial results – for the year to the end of June – mirrored the club’s poor on-field performance last season; with it slipping into the red, turnover dropping significantly and debt levels rising.

The plc holding company of the Scottish football club – in which Irish financier Dermot Desmond is the largest shareholder – has reported a pre-tax loss of £2.13 million (nearly €2.6m) for its latest fiscal year; down from a profit of £2m for the preceding 12 months.

Trading profit, before all exceptional items were taken into account, amounted to £4.46m – down from £11.23m the previous year.

Celtic’s net debt levels – as of the end of June – had risen by £4.34m, on a year-on-year basis, to £5.85m. The company’s turnover last year fell by 15% to £61.72m.

The fall in turnover was mainly down to the status of European competition the club found itself involved in last season – and the difference between income derived from participation in the Champions League to that of the Europa League (the old UEFA Cup).

The rise in its debt levels reflect the increased amount of money Celtic spent on players during the period, but the club did manage marginally to cut its wage bill to £36.5m.

In the club’s latest accounts, its board lists participation in the group stages of the Europa League, the subsequent playing of two more competitive European ties than in the previous season, the extension of its kit manufacturing/ sponsorship deal with Nike, the signing of a three-year shirt sponsorship deal with Tennent’s lager (a brand now owned by Irish drinks group, C&C) and the appointment of Neil Lennon as manager as operational highlights for the financial year.

Celtic chairman John Reid said that, given changes in personnel at the club last season were necessary, the overall results – “heavily influenced by exceptional costs” – were not “overly disappointing“, but added that a repeat in the current year “will not be straightforward”.