Burnley FC post another £29m financial loss as TV rights plummet after relegation
Burnley Football Club have posted pre-tax losses of £29.2m in their latest financial accounts.
The accounts cover the 12 months leading up to July 31, 2025, the period in which Burnley achieved automatic promotion from the Championship under Scott Parker.
Turnover decreased from £133.6m to £71.7m as a result of the club’s relegation the previous season.
This was mainly due to the Clarets missing out on the Premier League’s broadcasting deals, meaning TV rights decreased from £110m the previous year to £55m.
Despite their relegation to the second tier, Burnley’s wage bill still stood at £82m, just £11m lower than the previous year in the top flight (£93m). This gave the club an average weekly wage of £37,000.
To compare, Burnley’s wage bill was around £54m the last time they played in the Championship.
It’s the second straight year the club have posted pre-tax losses of around £29m, having lost £28.5m in 2024. In 2024 meanwhile, they lost £36m.
Analysing the “principal risks and uncertainties”, the accounts state: “The group faces a number of risks and uncertainties and has measures in place to mitigate the impact of these risks.
“As is common with many professional football clubs, the principal risk to the group is the possibility of the football club's relegation from the league in which it competes.
“The group's primary source of revenue is TV broadcasting monies and relegation from the league in which the club competes would result in a reduction in the club's tumover and would bring forward debt reduction measures on external borrowings.
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“Liquidity risk and the management of working capital is the main financial risk faced by the club. The mitigation of this risk involves complex financial modelling and forecasts, which enable management to make decisions in a timely manner to ensure the club has sufficient working capital and complies with all financial covenants.
“Another risk to the group is the consequence of non-compliance with Premier League, FA and English Football League rules and regulations, in particular Financial Fair Play regulations. The group takes all necessary steps to ensure compliance with relevant rules and regulations.”
Digging deeper into some of the other figures, the club’s wage to turnover ratio rose from 69 per cent to 114 per cent. The club spent £86m on acquiring new players, while bringing in £100m in player sales.
The total number of staff employed by the club increased from 388 in 2024 to 408 in 2025.
Despite the average home attendance dropping from 21,153 to 19,876, match day income actually rose marginally from £8.8m to £9m, while retail sales also just rose from £2.6m to £2.7m.
The club owes £105m in bank loans, up from £92m last year. That itself was up from £70m in 2023.