Club update: playing budget & Crowdfunder

The club is to extend its Boost the Budget Crowdfunder by a month in a bid to raise more money for the playing squad budget.

The board understands that some supporters have reservations about a Crowdfunder for this purpose so board member Adrian Seddon and manager Neil Reynolds want to update co-owners on the current situation.

Full details are laid out in the following article but the five key points are:

1. Our ground build debts and previous inability to raise advertising money means our playing budget is no longer competitive for our league and we’ve been unable to increase it this season – as such we believe we are now in the bottom quarter of our league’s playing budgets.
2. At the end of 2021 we had reasonable cash reserves in the bank but we’ve had to invest most of this into keeping the club running (see below for more details).
3. Neil believes an increase of £600 per week to spend on the squad wages will allow him to retain a squad of 18 players rather than 16, helping maintain stability and improving our chances of reaching the play-offs this season.
4. The Crowdfunder is a one-off for this season only which is aiming to fund the £600 per week gap and we are asking co-owners and supporters to contribute in return for rewards.
5. We have invested in two jobs that will bring in more money from outside the club – a commercial manager and an events manager – the new money they raise will be spent on the squad from next year when we should start to see some significant increases to the playing budget.

In 2014-15 when we won promotion to the National League North, our budget for the squad at 2022 prices (factoring in inflation) was 14.5 per cent higher than the budget we have for this season. This season’s figure is before the Crowdfunder in a league which is now much more competitive.

Crowdfunder page: BoosttheBudget

Adrian Seddon said: “We know running a supporter-owned football club is not easy. We don’t have a rich person behind the scenes to bankroll us and if we want to increase our chances of reaching the play-offs this season, we need supporters to contribute to our Crowdfunder.

“I’m under no illusions that it’s a difficult time especially given the cost-of-living crisis which we are all having to face.

“However when we set out to develop a five-year vision for the club, more than 700 of you, our supporters, told us you wanted sustainable success on the pitch.

“We feel what we’re doing is going to make us more sustainable in the coming years. We’ve employed two people whose job it is to raise hundreds of thousands of pounds via advertising and events that we can spend on the playing budget from next year.

“That does leave a gap for this year and that’s why we are asking the club owners to put the money in by contributing to the Crowdfunder. Our business plan includes some good targets but we need year one to go well and help us work towards those targets.

“We all recognise there is a direct correlation between performances on the pitch and overall success of the club - if we’re winning and playing entertaining football then attendances go up, people spend longer in the bars, buy a new hat or scarf, put more in the barrels, etc, and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

“So I would ask owners to please consider a contribution to the Crowdfunder if you haven’t already. Unfortunately in football there are no guarantees but anything we can do to increase the budget will help increase our chances.

“Ultimately the power lies with all of us – co-owners and supporters – to determine the success of the club. The Crowdfunder will assist greatly in giving us the best chance of on pitch success which in turns drives financial performance across the club.

“We will be holding board surgeries at home games where you can come and talk to us about this and ask any questions.”

Get to know our business plan and numbers

We know not all supporters have read our business plan that was shared in June at our General Meeting. The plan sets out all the details of our budgeting for the next three years.

We would highlight that the business plan is the first real attempt the club has made to conclusively address the club’s large borrowings. In the past seven years we’ve only been able to pay off the interest owing each year; now the club is aiming to pay off capital as well as interest. 

Below are some key points taken from the plan and from Adrian and Neil, which explain more of the detail behind our current position and why we are running the Crowdfunder this season.

Financial position

• Because of the debts we still have on our stadium build, the club has not been able to increase the playing budget significantly over the past four years.
• Things have changed – other clubs now have more money than we do, and players are understandably choosing/prioritising higher financial offers from other clubs to help them pay their mortgage and increasingly expensive bills.
• At last November’s AGM we explained we had reasonable cash reserves in the bank but the majority of this had to be spent to fund to the club and keep us going, for example:
  • We are still dealing with the impact of losses from the COVID shutdown
  • Repairs and improvements we had to make at Broadhurst Park to keep it safe and clean for all supporters and visitors – the first time we’ve done this in seven years
  • Making investments needed to help us start delivering our Vision – our five-year growth plan based on supporters’ wishes – for example developing the SMRE space to accommodate more Academy players.

Playing budget for this season

• The original intention was to increase the football budget for this season; however, the board made the difficult but responsible decision to not overstretch the club until we start earning more money from our new focus on commercial opportunities.
• Supporters may believe the size of the budget is being used as an excuse for recent results but the simple fact is we believe we are now in the bottom quarter of our league in terms of our playing budget (based on conversations with chairs of other clubs).
• Neil has always spent within the budget set by the board.
• The Crowdfunder has a £25,000 target which would allow Neil to spend an extra £600 per week on players across the season.
• This means he would be able to retain a squad of 18 players rather than 16, which gives us greater cover for injuries and suspensions, more stability and a better chance of aiming for the play-offs.
• We acknowledge co-owners and supporters may decide they will not contribute to this Crowdfunder and of course that’s the right of each individual.
• If we do not reach the target, the reality is we will lose several of our better players and Neil would need to bring in Academy players and more loanees.
• The Crowdfunder is intended as a one-off for this season only. Our intention is to increase the playing budget from next year using new money coming in from outside the club via our commercial manager and events manager.

The numbers we are working towards:

• In season 2023-24 we are planning to increase the playing budget versus this season by 53 per cent
• In season 2024-25 we are planning to increase the playing budget versus the previous season by 23 per cent, with a target for promotion to the National League North

These increases will be possible due to considerable extra money generated this season and next, now we have a Commercial Manager and an Events & Hospitality Manager in place; but this also requires us to perform on the pitch this season, which is why we need the Crowdfunder now.

If we split the £25,000 Crowdfunder target across of our current 2,076 co-owners it would represent a contribution of £12.04 pence for the season per co-owner. Or for the 10 months of the season, £1.33 per co-owner per month.

If you wish to contribute to the Crowdfunder either by buying a reward or making a small donation, please click here.