Sheffield Wednesday Finances 2021/22

One Step Forward

It would be difficult to beat the drama of Sheffield Wednesday’s promotion to the Championship last season. There was the winner in the last minute of extra time in the League One play-off final, which was scored by Josh Windass, who emulated the feat of his father Dean 15 years earlier.

Even more incredible was the play-off semi-final, when Wednesday somehow overhauled a 4-0 deficit from the first leg against Peterborough United with a thrilling 5-1 victory at Hillsborough before eventually triumphing on penalties.

However, that positive mood was somewhat dissipated when manager Darren Moore left the club “by mutual consent” a few weeks later, once again leading to a period of uncertainty. The big man was replaced by former Watford manager Xisco last month.

It is therefore timely to take a look at Wednesday’s finances, not least because they have only just published their accounts for the 2021/22 season.

Profit/(Loss) 2021/22

Sheffield Wednesday’s 2021/22 accounts cover a season when they finished 4th in League One, losing to Sunderland in the play-off semi-final. They had been relegated from the Championship the previous season, due to receiving a 6-point deduction for breaching the EFL’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules.

Despite relegation, Wednesday’s pre-tax loss significantly decreased from £25.8m to £7.3m, as revenue rose £4.7m (40%) from £11.6m to £16.4m and profit from player sales increased from £0.6m to £1.0m.

However, the largest improvement was due to operating expenses being cut £14.2m (37%) from £37.9m to £23.7m.

The return of fans to the stadium, after COVID restrictions were lifted, resulted in increases in both match receipts & associated turnover, up £2.1m (27%) from £7.9m to £10.0m, and commercial, which shot up 70% (£2.6m) from £3.8m to £6.4m. Other operating income fell from £0.8m to just £25k.

Note: Wednesday do not separate match day and broadcasting in the accounts, so I have estimated the split based on similar sized clubs in League One.