Most National League clubs from the 2021/22 season have now filed their financial results, so I thought I’d take a look at how Town compared to our rivals during our brief stay in non-league last year. I’m not an accountant so I’m not going to try to interpret anything technical - this is not a scientific assessment of every club’s financial health, I’m just a sad bástard who finds this sort of stuff quite interesting.
The first thing to note is that most clubs at this level take advantage of an exemption for small companies which allows them to avoid providing detailed accounts. Some clubs have pretty much only submitted a balance sheet and little else. Apart from Town, Chesterfield and Wrexham, no one else has submitted detailed breakdowns of turnover, expenditure, etc. This makes it difficult to accurately compare things like wage budgets, but an educated guess is possible. FC Halifax Town and Solihull Moors haven't published their accounts yet, so they aren't included here.
RankingsOperating loss | Club | Amount (£m) |
1. | Stockport County | 4.862 |
2. | Wrexham | 2.914 |
3. | Chesterfield | 2.371 |
4. | Dagenham & Redbridge | 1.746 |
5. | Notts County | 1.692 |
6. | Torquay United | 1.190 |
7. | Grimsby Town | 0.931 |
8. | Bromley | 0.851 |
Player additions (transfer fees) | Club | Amount (£'000) |
1. | Wrexham | 1,175 (National League record) |
2. | Chesterfield | 483 |
3. | Stockport County | 368 |
4. | Notts County | 227 |
5. | Grimsby Town | 0 |
Wages | Club | Amount (£m) |
1. | Wrexham | 3.940 |
2. | Chesterfield | 3.416 |
3. | Grimsby Town | 3.070 |
Turnover | Club | Amount (£m) |
1. | Wrexham | 5.972 |
2. | Stockport County | 4.800 |
3. | Grimsby Town | 4.445 |
4. | Chesterfield | 3.928 |
5. | Bromley | 1.739 |
And a more in-depth look at each club (top 7 finishers):
1st Stockport CountyOwner: Mark Stott
Investments before or during 2021/22No new shares were issued during the season, however, £7.7m of debt to Stott was cleared in June 2022 in exchange for equity.
Infrastructure improvementsDuring the 2021/22 accounting period, the club made £985,756 worth of improvements to property and other fixed assets. Since 2017, £3m has been invested into improvements and additions. This includes
“improvements to the pitch, upgraded conference and events facilities, new seating, and training facilities.” In September 2022, the club agreed terms with Stockport Council on a 250-year lease for Edgeley Park and launched a public consultation on its vision for the expansion and improvement of the stadium. The plans include the replacement of two stands, new food and drink offerings and hospitality areas as well as in the region of 30,000 sq ft of flexible workspace in the new East Stand. The total capacity would increase to approximately 20,000.
Financial results£ | 2022 | 2021 |
Turnover | 4.8m | 2.1m |
Wages | Unknown | Unknown |
Player additions | 368k | 293k |
Creditors (<1 year) | 2.7m | 1.8m |
Operating loss | 4.9m | 2.6m |
2nd WrexhamOwner: The R.R McReynolds Company
Investments before or during 2021/22Immediately after acquiring the club in February 2021, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney invested £2m through a share purchase. They also loaned the club £3.7m during the season. These loans are accruing interest at 3% over the Bank of England base rate, so currently 7.25%. After the season concluded, the owners acquired more shares for £1.2m.
Infrastructure improvementsThe £3.7m loan from the owners primarily funded the purchase of the freehold for the Racecourse Ground. This, together with some improvements to the stadium, resulted in a total infrastructure spend for the year of £4.4m.
In November 2022, Wrexham Council approved plans to replace the old Kop stand at the Racecourse Ground. The development will raise the capacity of the stadium to 15,500.
Financial resultsNote #1: Income from the
Welcome to Wrexham documentary will be reflected in next year’s statement.
Note #2: The figure given for wages is described as "football costs" in Wrexham's press statement. It is unclear if this includes admin staff, so it might not be possible to make an apples to apples comparison with other clubs here.
£ | 2022 | 2021 |
Turnover | 6m | 1.5m |
--> Matchday | 2.7m |
--> Retail | 1.3m |
--> Sponsorships | 1.1m |
Wages | 3.9m | 1.3m |
Player additions | 1.2m | 0 |
Creditors (<1 year) | 4m | 380k |
Operating loss | 2.9m | 1.2m |
5th Notts CountyOwner: Alexander & Christoffer Reedtz
Investments before or during 2021/22The club borrowed £2m from the owners during the season, taking the total debt to £11.9m.
Financial results£ | 2022 | 2021 |
Turnover | Unknown | Unknown |
Wages | Unknown | Unknown |
Player additions | 227k | 3,606 |
Creditors (<1 year) | 13.7m | 11.3m |
Operating loss | 1.7m | 2.2m |
6th Grimsby TownOwner: 1878 Partners
Investments before or during 2021/22The owners loaned the club £1.5m interest-free during the season, mainly to pay off the previous owner's loans.
Infrastructure improvementsThe club made several long overdue investments over the season, which included "
pitch improvements (including an enhanced sprinkler system at Blundell Park) and new gym equipment and building at the training ground. A new glass barrier was installed in the Upper Youngs stand to improve the supporters' views." The owners are planning to develop a new £6m training facility in the coming years.
Financial results£ | 2022 | 2021 |
Turnover | 4.4m | 3.5m |
--> Matchday | 1.5m |
--> Commercial | 1.3m |
--> Broadcasting | 725k |
Wages | 3.1m | 2.8m |
Player additions | 0 | 0 |
Creditors (<1 year) | 865k | 1.2m |
Operating loss | 931k | 196k (profit) |
Note: Pay attention to the difference between the Mariners' broadcasting revenue and Chesterfield's below. This shows the benefit of parachute payments Town enjoyed in their first (and only) season back in the National League.
7th ChesterfieldOwner: Chesterfield FC Community Trust
Investments before or during 2021/22After the season had concluded, £10.8m of loans were exchanged for £5m of shares. Remaining amounts owed to the Trust total just over £1m.
Infrastructure improvementsChesterfield FC are planning to build a new training facility. In July 2022, they tabled a bid for some land "across town" and hope to move forward "pretty quickly".
Financial results£ | 2022 | 2021 |
Turnover | 3.9m | 2m |
--> Matchday | 2m |
--> Commercial | 1.3m |
--> Broadcasting | 258k |
Wages | 3.4m | 2.1m |
Player additions | 483k | 10k |
Creditors (<1 year) | 2.7m | 12.6m |
Operating loss | 2.4m | 413k |