Rangers Finances 2023/24

Starburster

Rangers’ 2023/24 accounts covered a season when they finished as runners-up in the SPFL Premiership behind Celtic for the third year in a row and also lost to their great rivals in the Scottish Cup final. Interim chairman John Gilligan described this as “a disappointing end to the season”, though Rangers did win the League Cup after defeating Aberdeen.

Rangers also failed to get past the Champions League play-off round, losing to PSV Eindhoven, though they did better in the Europa League, as they topped their group before being eliminated by Benfica in the last 16.

Gilligan commented, “Undoubtedly, it has been a challenging period for the football club with significant change occurring both on and off the park throughout both season 2023/24 and over the summer months.”

Off The Pitch

This was a reference to the loss of many key figures at Ibrox, which means that Rangers currently do not have a chief executive nor a director of football operations, while the chairman is only a temporary appointment.

John Bennett had to step down from his role as chairman for health reasons, though Gilligan said that he “remains a supportive shareholder and investor in the club”. However, American investor John Halsted was added to the board.

In addition, chief executive James Bisgrove left to join Al-Qadsiah in the Saudi Premier League, while director of football operations Craig Robertson also exited stage left.

Managerial Changes

Since Steven Gerrard was tempted by the riches of the Premier League, moving to Aston Villa in November 2021, Rangers have had three different managers, which has not helped matters, as they have all had their own playing styles, requiring much turnover in the squad.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst had first crack of the whip, though the former Dutch international only lasted a year before he was replaced by Michael Beale. Just 12 months later, Beale was also relieved of his duties, succeeded by former Club Brugge and Monaco coach Philippe Clement.

Profit/(Loss) 2023/24

Rangers legend Ally McCoist gave a damning assessment of last season’s financial results, “Those figures are really, really concerning. They’re trying to put a positive slant on it, but those losses, man, dear me.”

Of course, Ally is famous for his goalscoring exploits (and excellent punditry), while his financial qualifications are less well known, so let’s look into Rangers’ finances in detail to see whether he’s right to be concerned.

Ranger’s pre-tax loss shot up from £3.1m to £17.3m, despite revenue rising £4.5m (5%) from £83.8m to a club record £88.3m, as profit from player sales dropped from £23.6m to £5.6m.

This was partially offset by an increase in other operating income from £0.9m to £4.8m and a £1.1m gain on a property sale.

Operating expenses were pretty much held at the same level, rising by just 2% to £110m, though there was an increase in exceptional charges, up from £1.3m to £3.4m.

Loss after tax was slightly smaller at £17.2m, thanks to a £0.1m tax credit, as opposed to the prior year’s £1.0m charge.

Rangers’ revenue growth was largely driven by higher gate receipts & hospitality, which rose £4m (10%) from £40m to £44m, though there was also an increase in commercial, up £1m (7%) from £19m to £20m. However, broadcasting fell £1m (3%) from £25m to £24m, due to the failure to reach the Champions League group stage.

Rangers are clearly making efforts to get their cost base under control, as wages reduced by £3m (4%) from £64m to £61m, while player amortisation fell £2m (14%) to £11m.

However, they did book £2.9m player impairment, while other expenses climbed £4m (13%) to £32m.

Unsurprisingly, Rangers’ £17.3m pre-tax loss is the worst financial result in Scotland by some distance, as the next highest loss is only £4.4m at Hearts. As a rule, Scottish clubs run a tight ship, so every other club reported losses below £4m or a profit.

In stark contrast to their city rivals, Celtic posted a solid £17.8m profit, i.e. around £35m better than Rangers.