The majority of English football clubs are operating under severe financial risk despite record industry revenues, according to a landmark new report from the Independent Football Regulator (IFR).
Following an 18-month investigation, the regulator’s first ‘State of the Game’ report revealed that 94% of the 160 regulated clubs are currently trading unprofitably.
Despite generating combined revenues of over £9bn, clubs across England are heavily over-reliant on owner bailouts and escalating debt to keep pace with wage inflation and rivals.
Key findings from the ‘State of the Game’ report:
- 94% of clubs are loss-making: Unsustainable short-term spending continues to outpace organic club growth across the pyramid.
- 32 clubs have under a month of cash: More than a quarter of regulated clubs would face immediate collapse within 30 days if their owner withdrew financial backing.
- Technical insolvency: Over 60% of clubs across the EFL and National League have liabilities that exceed the book value of their assets.
- Operating costs outstripping revenue: 17 clubs in the lower tiers would run at a financial loss even if they paid nothing in player wages.
- Severe ‘cliff-edges’: The average Premier League club generates more than eight times the revenue of a typical Championship side, with top-flight parachute payments continuing to drive excessive, high-risk gambles in the second tier.
“If the owner walks away, they go bust”
Speaking to Sky Sports, IFR chair David Kogan warned that English football cannot rely on endless outside investment to cover up structural failure.
He said: “We have 32 clubs that have got less than 30 days’ cash cover in their accounts. If the owner walks away or drops dead, they’re insolvent and go bust.
“Today there is enough money going through the Premier League and the EFL for the sun to shine. This is exactly the moment when we need to address structural issues, because once that sun stops shining, those clubs will be in real trouble.”
What happens next?
The regulator has put forward a six-point intervention plan ahead of introducing mandatory club licensing from November.
Under the new framework, clubs will be required to maintain at least 30 days of operating cash reserves, implement robust contingency plans for sudden ownership exits, and adopt stricter long-term debt provisions.
The IFR has also reiterated that while it prefers the Premier League and EFL to negotiate their own revamped revenue distribution deal, it retains statutory “back-stop” powers to step in and enforce a settlement if the two bodies fail to agree terms.
“These initial findings reinforce the EFL’s longstanding position that English football generates sufficient revenue to sustain both a successful Premier League and a thriving pyramid,” the EFL said.
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