Now that all clubs have finally published their accounts for last season (Liverpool being the laggards), UK newspapers are starting to produce their analysis of the finances of the Premier League clubs.
Matt Scott in the Telegraph produced an in-depth analysis of club accounts, including net transfer spending (something that isn't easily identifiable). It is highly recommended.
James Lawton in the Independent wrote a very interesting article about the lack of governance in the Premier League and also published a table of club debt, which I have re-ordered and shown below.
| Premier League debt | |
| Chelsea | £734m |
| Manchester United | £439m |
| Fulham | £190m |
| Newcastle United | £150m |
| Liverpool | £123m |
| Aston Villa | £110m |
| Arsenal | £97.8m |
| Bolton Wanderers | £93m |
| Tottenham | £78.6m |
| Wigan Athletic | £73m |
| Sunderland | £66m |
| QPR | £56.1m |
| Everton | £45m |
| Manchester City | £41m |
| Blackburn Rovers | £21m |
| Norwich | £16.8m |
| Stoke City | £8m |
| West Bromwich | £2m |
| Swansea | £0m |
| Wolves | £0m |
There are a few interesting things to notice. For all the jibes directed towards Man City, it is important to recognise that the owner doesn't load debt onto the club (the £41m shown above appears at the end of the accounting period and the owner will pay-off any underlying debt by buying equity in the club). Wealthy benefactors such as Abramovic, Ashley (Newcastle) and Al-Fayed (Fulham) have still not yet converted the club debt to equity (a pattern generally repeated at other benefactor clubs).
