Chelsea’s annual loss tops £145m despite increased turnover
Chelsea FC have announced an annual loss of £145.6m after tax in the year leading to 30 June 2021.
The club, owned by Roman Abramovich since 2003, did however increase its turnover to £416.8m – up from £387.8m.
Chelsea are currently third in the Premier League and are reigning European Champions, having beaten Manchester City 1-0 in the Champions League final.
The increase in turnover is thanks to a rise in broadcasting revenue while the losses have been pinned on empty stadiums due to Covid-19 and a lower profit level from player sales.
Abramovich owns Fordstam Limited, the company who are financially supporting the Blues, with the company owing £1bn to “related companies” according to the accounts.
Elsewhere, the accounts show that the European Champions decided an “impairment loss” of £17.9m against the value of the squad was necessary and that there’s £24.1m owed in relation to “ongoing legal matters”.
Since 30 June, Chelsea have spent over £109m on Romelu Lukaku, Marcus Bettinelli and Saul Niguez while selling 13 players for over £103m – there’s also a potential income of £16.4m for previous transfers’ outstanding clauses.
Chelsea have also invested on a wider scale in their Women’s team, who last year reached the Champions League final.