Premier League promotion costs AFC Bournemouth £55.5m in losses

AFC Bournemouth has reported a pre-tax loss of £55.5 million during its 2021-22 financial year ending June 30, which the club attributed to a “concerted effort to get back to the Premier League in its second season away”.

This compares with profits of £17m in the previous year, largely made through transfers. Turnover was also down £18.5 million to £53.2 million, despite £37.8 million in Premier League parachute payments designed to soften the financial blow of relegation.

The 2021-22 accounting period saw the Cherries sell Arnaut Danjuma, Diego Rico, and Sam Surridge, while they brought on Ryan Christie, Jamal Lowe, James Hill, Siriki Dembele, and Kieffer Moore.

Looking ahead to the 2022-23 season under the new ownership of Bill Foley, the club has already spent £103.2 million since promotion on players including Marcus Tavernier, Marcos Senesi, Dango Ouattara, and Illia Zabarnyi. Last month also saw the commitment of £30 million to fund a new Dorset training facility.

Bournemouth CEO Neill Blake said: “During the last financial year, our focus was to achieve promotion out of the EFL Championship, which was ultimately achieved.

“A strategy of targeted expenditure on valuable assets within the playing squad, along with supporting infrastructure, continued to be a key component of the club’s outlook. This underpins our ambition to compete in the Premier League on a regular basis.

“We are very excited to see how the future of the club unfolds now that we have new ownership, with additional resources set to improve the club’s infrastructure, playing squad and global appeal.”

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