tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post4478933886602875728..comments2024-03-27T10:38:08.826+01:00Comments on The Swiss Ramble: What's Happening With Barcelona's Finances?The Swiss Ramblerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11423088862174893998noreply@blogger.comBlogger57125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-53397044009427048182011-07-16T18:57:50.919+02:002011-07-16T18:57:50.919+02:00@Lasse,
Yes, I've seen that report. It's ...@Lasse,<br /><br />Yes, I've seen that report. It's correct to the extent that liabilities are higher than assets, which is the definition of technical bankruptcy, but it's not really meaningful, as Barcelona can clearly meet their obligations.<br /><br />Other points:<br /><br />- Total liabilities include items like trade creditors, provisions and accruals as well as bank debt.<br />- Assets are under-stated on balance sheet, as does not reflect full market value of players.<br />- This report is a year out of date (based on 2009/10 figures). Since then, Barcelona have reduced their debt, though it's still on the high side.The Swiss Ramblerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11423088862174893998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-38811494167199194232011-07-15T12:45:15.633+02:002011-07-15T12:45:15.633+02:00(The report is about the economic state of la liga...(The report is about the economic state of la liga, in Spanish. Not just RM & Barca. Was thinking of an other report. The Guardian got their story from this report)Lassenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-30752924418572678952011-07-15T12:29:45.678+02:002011-07-15T12:29:45.678+02:00@SwissRambler
What's your say to these commen...@SwissRambler<br /><br />What's your say to these comments from Gay de Liebana? Are Barca technically bankrupt?<br /><br />""[That] Barcelona, the Liga champions and Champions League semi-finalists in 2009-10 and winners in 2010-11, are technically in a state of bankruptcy is alarming for the entire football sector," Gay de Liébana said."<br /><br />http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2011/jul/14/barcelona-arsenal-cesc-fabregas<br /><br />I found the original report, lot's of interesting comparisons of RM & Barca (.PDF):<br /><br />http://agprofesionales.es/paginas/liebana/liebana_liga0910.pdfLassenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-37301451842823035432010-10-27T06:21:28.940+02:002010-10-27T06:21:28.940+02:00Excellent article as always, yes it's a seriou...Excellent article as always, yes it's a serious blog but the best thing is you explain the complex financial stuff in language that is easy to digest for people, which I appreciate.<br /><br />Of course Barca won't go under and the fact they are allowed to take out a loan to cover wages is shoddy practice. Never in doubt that RM and Barca get away with a lot more than the other clubs in La Liga.<br /><br />A new TV deal for La Liga is something that needs to happen and soon, of course the same teams will be at the top as they are now because they will be in the position to generate more money than their rivals and will still receive a greater share as you said.<br /><br />Zlatan was a poor move, they have had made some shocking transfers, but the players they developed internally are worth so much.<br /><br />Then the politics of it all with Rosell and Laporta. The membership decision from Rosell is foolish wouldn't they want the money from the socios coming in.Geiiirnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-64420781907890385062010-10-20T13:18:09.206+02:002010-10-20T13:18:09.206+02:00Excellent piece! (Your ego must swell with every c...Excellent piece! (Your ego must swell with every comment post...)<br />Just discovered your blog and it was the first time I read something truly sensible about Barcas situation. As an outsider it's impossible to know whose numbers to trust, so it is quite a service you've provided here. (As a sidenote it's a disgrace that the Catalan football press can't offer the Barca socis this kind of informed analysis instead of their tabloid-junk.)<br />It did confirm the feeling I already had though: that Laporta's board were very irresponsible in the last couple of years of their mandate, while Rosell is working the numbers to fuel his vendetta against Laporta.<br /><br />It does make me feel even better than I already did about the off-loading of Ibra. While a terribly stupid deal to begin with, at least the club won't be paying him €60 million over the next four years, and also recuperating €24 million in tranfer fee.JGnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-9640987733099190922010-10-20T11:15:38.002+02:002010-10-20T11:15:38.002+02:00@Mina,
Thanks. Yes - my comment on selling Messi ...@Mina,<br /><br />Thanks. Yes - my comment on selling Messi wasn't entirely serious.The Swiss Ramblerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11423088862174893998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-36032921981979168982010-10-19T19:10:37.788+02:002010-10-19T19:10:37.788+02:00Good stuff.
Sell Messi for 100 million? That woul...Good stuff.<br /><br />Sell Messi for 100 million? That would be career suicide for any President, wouldn't it?Minanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-22662221317564125652010-10-13T22:31:45.666+02:002010-10-13T22:31:45.666+02:00I already read it few months ago :)...it was great...I already read it few months ago :)...it was great<br /><br />If you have time to get detailed again:) on the new season as they will announce their financial details for last season in the early november at the annual meeting.<br /><br />I am interested on how important was a good CL season for them and how that reflected on the finances. Because It was great to hear from Rummenigge that they are expecting a record turnover in the region of 350m €. And they did sign some new sponsors and improved their existing deals with T-Mobile and Audi.<br /><br />Like I said if you have time for that...if not I will be still glad to read some other articles on other clubs:)Sakinoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-70594260663230796532010-10-06T00:35:58.453+02:002010-10-06T00:35:58.453+02:00@Anonymous (12:26),
Thanks for your kind words.
...@Anonymous (12:26),<br /><br />Thanks for your kind words.<br /><br />You're in luck, as I already wrote about Bayern Munich's finances three months ago. You can find the article here:<br /><br />http://swissramble.blogspot.com/2010/06/how-can-bayern-munich-pay-franck-ribery.htmlThe Swiss Ramblerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11423088862174893998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-88311731029140999882010-10-06T00:26:57.490+02:002010-10-06T00:26:57.490+02:00first I must say...Great work..you really get into...first I must say...Great work..you really get into details...<br /><br />I have read a lot of your football related articles and I must say they are great:)<br /><br />I would love to see an article on detailed Bayern Munchen finances or something similar to Barcelona/City/Arsenal articles.<br /><br />If you have a time and resources for a detailed look on Bayern I would love to read it.<br /><br />Tnx again for nice readAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-9281412360359857332010-08-26T12:30:22.831+02:002010-08-26T12:30:22.831+02:00@Andrew..
the business model of UNICEF with Barca...@Andrew..<br /><br />the business model of UNICEF with Barca, maybe to encourage "niche" market..<br />just say like this..if barca shirt just common commercial company..like "nike" instead UNICEF, i just buy 1 shirt only for me..but since their shirt is "UNICEF", i might be buy it 10 shirts, so every christmas i will give 1 shirt to my love one,since i know my money partly will eventually donate to UNICEF.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-84273399388826493662010-08-20T16:21:09.396+02:002010-08-20T16:21:09.396+02:00@Phineas,
Thanks very much for that detail. I app...@Phineas,<br /><br />Thanks very much for that detail. I appreciate you taking the time.The Swiss Ramblerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11423088862174893998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-83727717854861593952010-08-20T16:14:48.103+02:002010-08-20T16:14:48.103+02:00Mes Que Un Blog
May thanks excellent article. Pe...Mes Que Un Blog<br /><br />May thanks excellent article. Perhaps the days of the Spanish banking system’s charitable attitude football club lending is over. The recent stress test on the European banking system showed problems Spanish banks have, 5 of the 7 banks that failed are Spanish. The bank most closely associated with Barcelona FC is La Caixa, a Barcelona based, mutually owned bank closely aligned to the Catalan region. La Caixa didn’t fail, but only scored 7.7, 5 was a fail, 6 was a must do better but most large banks, such as Santander scored 10. Britain’s own basket case, Lloyds scored 9.2, that is in 2 years given unfavourable economic conditions Lloyds will own 9.2p for each pound deposited with it.<br />100M EUR is miniscule given the size La Caixa’s loan book, but is symptomatic of the banking culture in Spain. Many banks have very strong attachments to the region in which they are based and may have seen themselves as regional development banks. Increasing European interest banks’ capital reserves may see this change, unless the appointed regulator is a Catalan.Phineasnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-91140743659200723152010-08-18T22:06:19.783+02:002010-08-18T22:06:19.783+02:00Great article!
I'm Pere Jansa, the director o...Great article!<br /><br />I'm Pere Jansa, the director of communication of the FC Barcelona. I have liked much the quality and the analysis of the article. I would like to contact directly with the author of this article and to organize an interview with him. Please, put in contact with me in following direction e-mail: <br /><br />pere.jansa@fcbarcelona.cat<br /><br />ThanksPere Jansàhttp://www.fcbarcelona.catnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-41144143474916580762010-08-18T17:45:20.017+02:002010-08-18T17:45:20.017+02:00Go Young Boys!Go Young Boys!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-57128039422719021302010-08-18T17:09:44.900+02:002010-08-18T17:09:44.900+02:00I never meant to come across as rude, so apologies...I never meant to come across as rude, so apologies for that of course. A sincere thanks for your latest reply, now I'm off to work on my written English so I don't sound so rude the next time around :-)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-62997245523826541532010-08-18T15:45:04.873+02:002010-08-18T15:45:04.873+02:00@Anoynmous (2:04),
I put in a considerable amount...@Anoynmous (2:04),<br /><br />I put in a considerable amount of time and effort analysing Barcelona's finances in almost painful detail, only for you to make cheap comments like "Really? To whom?" However, when I reply in kind, you're the one that's disappointed.<br /><br />OK, let's address the issues you brought up:<br /><br />1. If Barcelona were really in serious difficulties, they could easily raise funds by selling assets, i.e. their players. Somewhat tongue-in-cheek, I mentioned Messi for €100m. It might not be Messi, it might not be €100m, but the point is surely valid.<br /><br />2. Borrowing money to pay wages is obviously not a good thing - I covered this in the article.<br /><br />3. "They are not making enough money to pay their wages, end of story." It's more complicated than that, as I thought I'd explained in my article.<br /><br />4. Clearly, banks will not provide unlimited credit to any institution, even FC Barcelona, but my belief is that it would take an extreme set of circumstances before they pulled the plug.<br /><br />Thank you for the kinds words at the end of your initial comment, but frankly they did not seem to be in tune with your earlier points. Apologies for my response, which may well have been overly sensitive, but if you take another look at the tone of your comment, you might just understand why I reacted as I did.<br /><br />Either that, or it's because of my hangover after watching YB against Spurs.The Swiss Ramblerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11423088862174893998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-34932655559249345042010-08-18T15:07:43.650+02:002010-08-18T15:07:43.650+02:00I am quite disappointed, to be honest, that you ch...I am quite disappointed, to be honest, that you chose to try to score an easy point (which you failed to do, by the way, what I am saying is that they are not at all in such a good position as you seem to think) instead of actually adressing the issues I brought up. I really though better of you.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-18028707026521735692010-08-18T14:17:00.080+02:002010-08-18T14:17:00.080+02:00@Anonymous (2:04),
You wrote: "I fully agree...@Anonymous (2:04),<br /><br />You wrote: "I fully agree that Barcelona are not exactly about to go under tomorrow."<br /><br />My conclusion: "Are Barcelona going to go bankrupt? No way, José."<br /><br />But you don't agree with all my conclusions ...<br /><br />And for the record, my suggestion about selling Messi was made tongue in cheek. Although this is a serious blog, I do allow the occasional bit of humour to creep in.The Swiss Ramblerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11423088862174893998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-21786692778703795002010-08-18T14:04:08.249+02:002010-08-18T14:04:08.249+02:00"After all, if things get really desperate, t..."After all, if things get really desperate, they could always raise €100 million by selling Messi."<br /><br />Really? To whom?<br /><br />To sell there has to be a buyer. Sure, ManCity could be interested but I am honestly not sure even they would want to pay that much for him - and would Messi even want to go there? You can't sell a player against his will. And besides, what if he suffers a serious injury and his worth drops to nothing?<br /><br />I fully agree that Barcelona are not exactly about to go under tomorrow, but I still think you are painting a picture that may well be too bright and there are several dark clouds on the horizon. The bottom line is still that if you borrow money to pay running costs (which they, by their own admisson, have done) you are in trouble and the extended and improved contracts given to Messi et al won't just go away because the new guy in charge wants them to. And I still don't see how paying wages twice a year can be a factor in have cash-flow problems. They are not making enough money to pay the wages, end of story. Why would the frequency of the payments have anything to do with it?<br /><br />And while the banks may not want to demand money back from Barcelona unless until the shit really hits the fan, even banks can end up in situations where it's kill or be killed. And not everybody in Catalunia is a Barca fan, they are after all not even the only La Liga team in the town of Barcelona. In a situation where it's "protect my savings or allow Barca to buy yet another superstar" I'll bet you that quite a large number of fans would opt for saving their own money - especially those who are fans of other clubs.<br /><br />I hope I don't come across as too critical, I think you have done an absolutelyt brilliant job writing this peace, I just don't agree with all your conclusions.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-37782500519161337502010-08-17T03:01:40.851+02:002010-08-17T03:01:40.851+02:00Great article!
Are you planning on writing a post...Great article!<br /><br />Are you planning on writing a post about the Rangers and Celtic?<br /><br />Just read about the drop in the turnover of Celtic and Rangers' financial difficulties are also known.<br />I guess that's why they're so keen to join the EPL.<br />They can't grow in Scotland anymore. Can't increase their grounds' capacities, can't get bigger sponsorship and TV money, etc...<br /><br />I would love to learn more about their prospects, it must be very interesting.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-36177206373659638992010-08-16T17:57:46.083+02:002010-08-16T17:57:46.083+02:00Once more another great post. I hope you are getti...Once more another great post. I hope you are getting paid for these. If not, you should be.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-33424262824624811442010-08-15T05:41:30.776+02:002010-08-15T05:41:30.776+02:00I don't quite understand how amortization can ...I don't quite understand how amortization can work for football players. In the end of the day, there are so many ways a player can get out of contract. The most explicit way is to refuse to play for the team or to deliberately perform appalingly, like scoring an own goal. Since clubs actually lack control over its players, transfer fees would be more appropriate to count as expense.<br /><br />Recognizing players as assets allow clubs like Spurs to claim a profit from transfer markets in a scenario where a club pay wages to a player, rarely plays him, and sold him at a lower fee. Miraculously, this can be count profit when in true sense of economics, it is de facto a loss. Wonderful stuff from accounting.<br /><br />The schedule of owed transfer fees be repaid by Barcalona, the ability to bully banks to provide cheap funds for operations (and transfers) will be the decisive factor for Barcelona's finance in a short term basis. In a longer term basis(more than 1 year), there shouldn't be much worries. As mentioned by the ever brilliant The Swiss Rambler, shirt sponsors can bring in great deal of money to the club and Barcelona can always sell some of the most prized player to Man City at obscene prices.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-60106613674509291732010-08-14T18:50:19.489+02:002010-08-14T18:50:19.489+02:00Indeed, Malfeasance, that would clearly define Lap...Indeed, Malfeasance, that would clearly define Laporta´s mismanagement of Barcelona´s funds. For instance, allow me to point out a couple of dramatic examples...are you aware that in order to donate 100.000 € to an african country, 250.000 € were lavishly wasted between first class air tickets, luxury hotels, gourmet restaurants and a never ending list of friends and family invited to the superb holiday?? Equally, and shamefully, Laporta used the club´s resources to satisfy his sexual drive, by employing his lover in the club, a brasilian lady, unqualified for the job but certainly willing to please and satisfy her "boss". They are just a token of what has been going on in FC Barcelona in recent years, needless to say with the knowing silence of many people. One just hopes that many other such past eventualities will not go unpunished.Molotovnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-487486960623783530.post-21218068512046296182010-08-13T11:43:37.199+02:002010-08-13T11:43:37.199+02:00Remarkable post. I must admit I would somewhat til...Remarkable post. I must admit I would somewhat tilt toward XSM's statements, although the expense skyrocketing is pure malfeasance from the previous board.<br /><br />You know where the cash went to, don't you?<br /><br />Rgds,<br /><br />GFGeneral Fórcepshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06526709651863359425noreply@blogger.com