The Football Association has announced its financial results for the 2016-17 season which include a record £127m investment back into every level of football.
The results for the year ended 31 July 2017, show the governing body’s investment back into football was up from £125m in 2015-16 despite a fall in turnover which stood at £351m (£370m, 2016).
The FA reported a profit after tax of £16m [2016: £7m] with net assets of £146m [2016: £122m] and net debt falling to £150m [2016: £174m].
The results are comprised of a consolidation of Football Association Limited, Wembley National Stadium Limited and the National Football Centre Limited.
Martin Glenn, FA chief executive officer, said: “This is another set of strong financial figures for The FA, which has allowed us to invest a record-breaking £127m back into every level of English football.
“The FA is For All and, as a not-for-profit organisation, our core focus is to develop the national game and invest in the future. In 2016 we announced our four-year strategic plan to Unite the Game, Inspire the Nation, to bring English football closer together. Two years in and we are making real progress.
“Following new deals with Nike, Emirates, Budweiser, Disney and LG, as well as the transformative international broadcast rights deal for the Emirates FA Cup, The FA is now in a position to accelerate our investment into the game in the coming years. Our key areas of focus include grassroots football, the County FAs, coaching and participation, the Emirates FA Cup distributions, all England teams and our world-class facilities.
“Furthermore, The FA is transforming. In March 2017 we set out our plan to double the number of women and girls taking part in football by 2020. In May 2017 we announced a set of governance reforms that will benefit all of English football. In January 2018 we announced a series of new initiatives aimed at improving both the culture of the organisation and record investments back into the game.
“The FA is in good financial health and we have a clear focus to continually improve the way we service the needs of the English game and prove that The FA is For All.”
The FA generated turnover of £351.2m during the current season. This was a reduction of £18.5m compared to the 2015-16 season, driven primarily by the 2016-17 season being a men’s senior non-tournament year which typically results in lower turnover from broadcasting, events and lower prize funds received.
Broadcasting and sponsorship income are The FA’s largest revenue stream with domestic broadcasting rights for England fixtures and the Emirates FA Cup tied up until 2021. In October 2016 The FA announced a new international broadcasting deal for the Emirates FA Cup, from the 2018-19 season until the 2023-24 season. This new broadcast deal was the biggest ever deal for the international rights of the Emirates FA Cup. It guarantees an increased income stream for The FA over this period and ensures the financial stability for the medium term.
During the 2016-17 season Wembley Stadium connected by EE hosted 32 major events, including England senior men’s matches, the Emirates FA Cup Final, the EFL Cup Final, the SSE Women’s FA Cup Final, EFL Play-Off Finals, European home matches for Tottenham Hotspur, NFL International Series games, Heavyweight World Championship boxing between Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko and world-class music events – featuring headline acts Adele, The Stone Roses and Jeff Lynne’s ELO.
The FA’s investment in coaching and participation increased by 8 per cent this season, from £12m in 2015-16 to £13m in 2016-17. The FA also invested £22m to further its strategic priority in relation to ‘playing facilities For All’.
These funds are distributed to the Football Foundation, which manages a number of facilities schemes including grants to refurbish grassroots facilities, and creation of football hubs under the Parklife programme. The Sheffield Parklife hub opened during the 2016-17 season with hubs in Liverpool, Ealing, Eastleigh and Southampton planned to open during the 2017-18 season. In addition, £5m was invested in women’s football to support our strategic priority to double participation in the women’s game.
Across the 2016-17 season, over 8.5m adults, aged 16 and above, played football in England, with more than 462,493 licensed coaches. The total number of affiliated teams was 88,387, including: 23,390 adult male, 1,470 adult female, 32,399 youth male, 3,546 youth female, 24,988 mini soccer, 1,846 disability male, 145 disability female.
Image: PA Images
