Are Bolton Wanderers in Debt?

Another busy summer for Bolton has seen the team make eight new additions to the playing squad and another expensive window for the Wanderers, but how has this affected their finances? This year’s incomings and outgoings won’t become public until the summer of 2025; however Football Ventures (Whites) Limited has reported a loss of £5.6 million for the financial year ending June 30, 2023 - as per the public document found here.

In 2022 they reported a turnover of approximately £14 million however, 2023 saw a turnover of just under £19.5 million but the company are still reporting losses. Despite an increase in revenue, Football Ventures are yet to make a profit while in ownership of the Wanderers. This year could be more of the same if promotion is not achieved.

Wages and Salaries

In the 22/23 season, the staff numbers increased by just under 8% (from 384 to 416): this includes the playing squad, wider staff, hotel staff, and matchday personnel. This saw the total figure spent on staff rise from £10.3 million to over £12.8 million, over £2 million needs to be raised on the pitch to recoup this.

Taken from @OfficialBWFC on X

Promotion to the Sky Bet Championship, automatically or through the playoffs, would be the easiest way to earn this money back. The new Sky TV deal will also be beneficial but it is unlikely to see the full return on the £2 million lost in wages alone. This figure doesn’t account for the money spent on transfer fees over the last season.

The total spent on transfers increased again this summer, with eight new signings for the first team - to read more about them, read my article here. Four were for a fee: Szabolcs Schön was signed for just under €1 million, but the other fees are ‘undisclosed’. Osei-Tutu, McAtee, and Lolos have all come into the squad to add to the promotion charge but the total paid is still unknown.

The Promotion Rivals

Understanding finances is not a simple task but it becomes easier when comparing Bolton’s reports to other promotion rivals in League One from last season - for example, Peterborough United and Oxford United.

In the financial year ending 2023, Peterborough’s turnover dropped from £18 million to £10.5 million and Oxford’s increased just under £1 million to £7.5 million. Neither compare to Bolton’s £19.5 million but this could be because the Wanderers achieved victory in the EFL Trophy final. At the time, the winning team received £100,000 as well as the additional revenue from more matches at home, and Wembley Stadium.

Unfortunately, Oxford United’s expense on employees is unavailable for 2023 but they did have 192 people employed. Peterborough United had 239 employees, nearly half of Bolton’s 416 employees (possibly explained by the hotel staff). Without the hotel staff, the Wanderers would still have just under 100 more staff members. This means Bolton spent £5 million more on employees alone!

The Ken Anderson Era

The ownership change in 2019 saw Ken Anderson depart and Sharon Brittan replace him as the chairman of the Wanderers. While Brittan has not made a profit this year, the finances under Anderson were significantly worse and a lot of progress has been made.

Taken from @OfficialBWFC on X

In the 2017 financial reports, Bolton’s parent company (Burnden Leisure) lost £12.9 million in operating costs alone. Turnover also dropped from £24.3 million to just £8.3 million and gate receipts also dropped approximately £200,000. Shortly after this financial report was published, players and wider staff received their monthly salaries late for the first time (November 2018).

Compared to the most recent figures under Brittan (see beginning of article), Bolton have improved in almost every area and are becoming a sustainable football club again.

Could Bolton Wanderers Turn a Profit This Year?

Despite the large sum spent on transfers and wages in the 23/24 season (which is a figure that is still unknown), Bolton could turn a profit in the next financial publications. Reaching the playoff final will have helped boost the matchday incomings as playoffs are rumoured to be some of the most expensive matches in football, especially in England.

Cameron Jerome, Declan John, Jack Iredale, and Jón Dadi Bödvarsson all left the club on permanent deals, meaning some money was raised (even if that is just less on wages). However, all four deals were completed after the end of the 23/24 financial year, meaning that they won’t be accounted for in the 2024 financial reports.

Lots of football clubs remain in “controlled debt” but once in debt, it is very difficult to get out of debt as seen with Everton and other Premier League clubs.