Sunderland's latest accounts have laid bare the impact of the Covid pandemic on the club's finances, with turnover plunging by almost two-thirds during the 2020-21 season.
The figures cover the year ending July 31, 2021, which saw the Black Cats play virtually the entire campaign behind closed-doors due to the pandemic, with fans admitted to only one home game - the second leg of the play-off against Lincoln City - at the Stadium of Light, and even then the capacity was restricted to 10,000.
Gate receipts dropped from £5.6m the year before to just £1.2m, while TV and media income fell from £17.2m to only £5.4m. The impact of lockdown was underlined by the near-total absence of income from conference and banqueting, with that revenue stream generating just £12,000 in 2020-21 compared to £2.1m the year before.
Sunderland's operating expenses fell to £21m from £29.7m, and wages were also reduced from £14.5m to £11.8m. But the club made a loss after tax of £11.7m, up from £2.6m the previous year.
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The accounts cover the first five months of Kyril Louis-Dreyfus' time as the club's largest single shareholder, and reveal that over the course of the year the shareholders injected £2.2m into the club. A further £6.5m has been put into the club during the current accounting year.
The club paid directors a total of £580,000, which included £295,000 for loss of office. The club's full accounts for the year ending July 31, 2021, can be accessed here.
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