Motherwell announce profit in latest accounts

Motherwell have announced they have posted a record £3.5m profit in its latest accounts up to year ending May 2021.

The figure is a significant lift on the £435,970 profit recorded in 2020, with a total increase of £3,139,645, but included a £1,518,471 accounting profit attributed to a Scottish Government interest-free loan.

In his review of the financial year, Chairman, Jim McMahon, noted: “Despite the financial challenges created by Covid-19, I can report that the profit for the financial year is a club record £3,575,615.

“The pandemic caused a major reduction in our operating income. For example, revenue in the prior year included £1.35m of gate receipts. With matches being played behind closed doors, no such income was generated in 2020/21.

“The restrictions also reduced our commercial income by almost £350,000. There were various other smaller reductions in funding from the football bodies, who had front-loaded awards at the start of the pandemic.

“The club had put measures in place to reduce the impact of the pandemic on its finances. These were very successful and resulted in £4.1m of Other Operating Income being recorded in the financial year. This includes monies from the HMRC Job Retention (furlough) scheme, a business interruption insurance claim and an SPFL Trust Covid-19 grant.

“We also borrowed £2,959,000 from the Scottish Government to further strengthen our position should the pandemic, and the associated restriction to our normal trading conditions, continue for an extended period. The borrowings are to be repaid between September 2022 and August 2042 and are unsecured and interest-free.”

Concluding his summary, McMahon said: “The club’s financial position is healthy in the short to medium term. But we are acutely aware of the potential threats we face. We hope that this is the final spin of the Covid-19 roulette wheel, but it would be imprudent to plan solely on that basis.

“We continue to examine new ways of generating additional revenue streams and look at ways to streamline costs and make the club more efficient. This needs to be done whilst remaining competitive in what is probably the most challenging top league in Scotland for the last two decades. It is not an easy balance to get right, but it is essential that we do.

“The club only works properly and with a chance of success when all the component parts – fans, owners, playing and coaching staff, the management team and the Board – work in unison. They have, and I give my thanks to everyone for making that happen during 2020/21.”