Sunderland Finances 2022/23

Love Action (I Believe In Love)

There appears to be a growing sense of optimism around the Stadium of Light, as evidenced by Sunderland fans once again demonstrating their loyalty to the cause by enthusiastically reacting to a humble kit launch, while they have also welcomed new manager, Régis Le Bris, with open arms.

The former Lorient coach certainly said all the right things on his arrival, “All coaches talk about their enthusiasm and vision when they start a new role. I’m certainly here to pass on my energy and my convictions, but also to listen and learn. The history of this club is very strong, and this is a unique opportunity to be part of that legacy. I recognise the potential of our team, a group that has seen both successes and more difficult times.”

2023/24 Season

Those “more difficult times” would likely include the end of last season, when the team’s form fell off the proverbial cliff, so much so that they lost 10 of their last 15 games to finish a lowly 16th in the Championship, just six points above the relegation zone.

Furthermore, the team offered some desperately dull football for their fans, in stark contrast to the attractive, progressive displays of the previous season.

Slow Hiring

The supporters’ frustrations would not have been helped by the lengthy delay it took to hire Le Bris. In fact, the Frenchman was announced a full four months after Michael Beale was sacked in February.

It’s been fairly widely reported that Sunderland failed to appoint the preferred candidate, as Will Still reportedly rejected an offer in favour of joining French club Lens, who admittedly could offer European football, while respected coach Liam Rosenior also dropped out of the race.

Given the protracted discussions, this does raise the question of why the leading choices opted to go elsewhere. Some have speculated that this might be linked to the poor quality of the squad, while others have suggested that this could imply that the club’s finances are not good enough to compete at the higher levels in the Championship.

Changes in Manager

One obvious reason for Sunderland’s slump last season was the surprising decision to make a change in manager, with the club sitting pretty in ninth place, when they sacked the popular Tony Mowbray in December 2023.

As the club itself said a short while before his dismissal, Mowbray had “progressed our on-pitch performance through an exciting style of play that led to widespread acclaim.”

“Mogga” was replaced by Michael Beale, who always seemed a strange choice, given that he had been sacked by Rangers after less than a year in charge, while his departure from QPR left many fans questioning his integrity. In any case, Beale only lasted 64 days at the Stadium of Light before being shown the door, when he was replaced by Mike Dodds on an interim basis for the rest of the season.

Ownership

Kyril Louis-Dreyfus (KLD) became Sunderland’s controlling shareholder in February 2021, when he bought 41% of the club, though the previous ownership group retained 59%, split between Stewart Donald 34%, Juan Sartori 20% and Charlie Methven 5%. Even though he only acquired a minority stake, this deal still gave Louis-Dreyfus full control of the board.

This transaction made Louis-Dreyfus the youngest person to ever own an English football club and even now he is just 26 years old. That said, his late father Robert once owned French team Olympique de Marseille, so his family has been around football for a while.

In June 2022 Louis-Dreyfus increased his stake to 51% after buying out Charlie Methven’s 5% and another 5% from Donald, who also sold 10% to Sartori. That increased the Uruguayan’s shareholding to 30%, while reducing Donald’s to 19%.

Then in May 2023 Louis-Dreyfus and Sartori acquired Donald’s remaining stake, so the current shareholding is 64% for KLD and 36% for Sartori.