Everton announce eye-watering £400 million losses over four-year period
Everton have released the accounts which have put them at risk of a Premier League points deduction, confirming losses exceeding £400 million over a four year period since 2019.
The Merseyside club met the obliged deadline to make the figures public before the end of March, announcing that majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri injected a further £70 million from his personal funds to support the club.
Moshiri’s private investment since his purchase of Everton is thought to exceed £700 million, which while demonstrating his enduring commitment also underlines how precarious the financial situation at Goodison Park.
On the surface, the latest accounts are a significant improvement on recent seasons. They show a further £44.7 million losses were incurred for the last financial year.
However, it is the cumulative impact of successive losses which prompted the Premier League to act a week ago.
Premier League clubs are allowed to lose a maximum of £105 million over three years, but Everton's considerably exceed that figure.
A year ago, Everton’s combined losses over a three-year period amounted to £372.6 million. With this announcement, the combined losses over a three year period have reduced to £305.5 million.
However, these results still mean Everton’s published losses since 2019 amount to £417.3 million.
Previously, Moshiri has successfully argued there are mitigating factors for this, such as the ongoing costs of building a new stadium on Liverpool’s dockside and the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The grey area which has led the Premier League to ask an independent commission to determine if Everton have broken Profitability and Sustainability rules (previously known as Financial Fair Play) is understood to be focused on those submissions.
“The impact of Covid-19 remaining significant, with the pandemic contributing to combined crystallised losses of more than £90m, with significant substantial uncrystallised losses also incurred,” read Everton’s statement.
“The breaking of ground at the Everton Stadium at the very start of the 2021/22 accounting period incurred significant capital costs – £207m – relating to the infilling of Bramley-Moore Dock, enabling works, and above-ground construction commencing on all four sides of the stadium.”
The latest accounts underline the importance of Everton offloading players over the period of 2021/22, with Richarlison, Lucas Digne and James Rodríguez among the high earners to leave. Richarlison’s sale to Tottenham Hotspur contributed to Everton generating £67.7 million of profit on player trading.
“Despite the substantial financial impact of several unexpected and unprecedented factors in recent seasons, the club remains in a secure financial position thanks to the continued support and commitment of our majority shareholder,” continued Everton statement.
The independent commission has the power to deduct Premier League points, a heavy fine or spending restrictions. A hearing is unlikely to impact on the current domestic season as Everton seek to fight off relegation.
