Deloitte: Football Crowds Still Rising
A new report from Deloitte’s Sports Business Group has revealed average attendances at European football matches continue to rise despite the impact of the global recession.
Average attendances in the first two rounds of this season’s UEFA Champions League were 5% higher than a year ago while at the same time England’s Premier League matches remain 90% full.
Football’s commercial deals have also proved resilient to the recession with the report stating that the continuing strength of top clubs was indicated by Liverpool’s new shirt sponsorship deal.
Announced last month, the new Liverpool contract will see banking group Standard Chartered become its new shirt sponsor from next July in a four-year deal worth an estimated £80m.
The Deloitte report also highlighted the strength of Arsenal FC’s latest financial report, which showed that the club’s annual profits had risen by almost a quarter to £45.5m.
‘When the economic downturn hit, we expressed cautious optimism for football clubs that the strong and loyal supporter base and the security of long-term broadcast and commercial deals would provide some degree of buffer against the worst effects of recession,’ said Dan Jones, partner at Deloitte’s Sports Business Group.
‘Clubs were acutely aware that the real effects would start to be felt in the 2009/10 season, and the strong attendances achieved at the start of the season would provide a welcome degree of comfort.’
The report added that while the situation was tougher for the smaller teams in the English Premier League, this was being eased ‘by the distribution mechanism of Premier League broadcast monies’.
