Stoke City Finances 2023/24

The Light Pours Out Of Me

Stoke City’s 2023/24 financial results covered a season when their 17th place in the Championship means that they have now finished in the bottom half of the table six years in a row since their relegation from the Premier League in 2018.

Consistency is normally to be applauded, but not when the record is consistently mediocre. Recent results are in stark contrast to their time in the top flight, when they finished 9th in three consecutive seasons up to 2015/16.

Stoke’s vice-chairman, Richard Smith, said, “I don’t think we’ve made any secret of the fact we want to get back into the Premier League. We spent 10 years there but we’ve been out of it for a while now and we’re very keen to get back up there.”

To that end, Stoke have been among the bigger spenders in England’s second tier, but to no avail. They are backed by the wealth of bet365, but have been constrained by the need to comply with the EFL’s Profitability and Sustainability regulations, though it’s also true that they did not make the most of the parachute payments they received after relegation.

Manager Changes

They have not been helped by frequent changes in the manager, which has led to much upheaval in the squad.

Alex Neil was sacked in December 2023, when he was replaced by Steven Schumacher, who had led Plymouth Argyle to the League One title the previous year. However, he found life much more difficult in the Potteries, leading to his dismissal after just five league games this season.

He was succeeded by Narcis Pèlach, but the Spanish coach lasted only three months before he was given his P45. The latest man to be handed the poisoned chalice is Mark Robins, who did very well at Coventry City, but will have his work cut out in his current role.

That makes seven managers that have been tasked with restoring Stoke’s fortunes on the pitch since the club dropped down to the Championship seven years ago (excluding caretaker appointments) – and Michael O’Neill was in charge for nearly half of that period.

The board remains optimistic, believing that the latest management change “will lead to improved football performance of the club”, but Stoke fans have heard similar messages before, so will not be holding their breath.

Profit/(Loss) 2023/24

The magnitude of Stoke’s challenge was highlighted by the 2023/24 accounts, when their pre-tax loss more than doubled from £11.0m to £25.7m, mainly because profit from player sales reduced from £15.3m to £4.4m.

Revenue rose £1.1m (3%) from £31.2m to £32.3m, but this was more than offset by cost growth, as operating expenses increased £5.1m (9%) from £57.9m to £63.0m.

The loss after tax was even higher at £28.8m, due to a £3.1m tax charge.