The Impact of behind-closed-doors football on Premier League clubs

As professional football in the UK is set to resume after hiatus due to COVID-19, we’ll see just how much the fans watching the matches are affecting Premier League products.

Ticket sales are a relatively small part of the budgets of first-class clubs, which rely more heavily on television funding, commercial contracts and sponsorship deals. 먹튀검증 Premier League clubs earned £677m from matchday revenues in 2018/19, representing 13% of club turnover.

Sheffield United will be the side hardest hit by playing behind closed doors. The Blades generate £6.5m from matchday revenue, which represents 30 per cent of their annual turnover.

Those figures and those of Aston Villa, fourth on list with matchday revenue of £13m representing 24 per cent of their £54m, are impacting to some extent by the figures being based on matchday revenue outside the Premier League.

Aside from last season’s promoted clubs, it is the big clubs who are most affected by the drop in revenue, at least as a percentage of their total turnover. Arsenal will forego 24 per cent, while Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur (both 18 per cent), Liverpool (16 per cent) and Chelsea (15 per cent) are also taking a big hit.

United are the league’s biggest earners on a matchday, so it is they were will experience the biggest monetary loss. Matchday revenue usually nets the Red Devils £111m. At the other end of the scale are Bournemouth. Matchdays at the Vitality Stadium contribute just four per cent (£5m) of the Cherries’ £131m turnover.

Of course, the financial impact is only one aspect. Clubs are likely to feel a greater effect in the lack of matchday atmosphere and any knock-on effect for players’ performances.

Clubs and the Premier League will also be anxious to see how their product holds up in the eyes (and ears) or a global TV audience who are used to pictures and audio of vociferous support from the stands.

In the stadium, it is Norwich who might feel the greatest impact. Carrow Road is the loudest stadium in the Premier League over the past six season, with noise levels at 91dB. Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Molineux (84dB) and Manchester United’s Old Trafford (84dB) are just behind.