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James Hunter

Sunderland's 2020-21 accounts lay bare the impact of the Covid pandemic as turnover plunges

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.

READ MORE: Carl Winchester set to be sidelined for several weeks, in blow to Sunderland's promotion chances

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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