What does it cost

[canfan]

Just out of interest, does anybody have any idea or would want to speculate on how much it costs each week to keep a non league club going???

I know it would vary due to wage bills etc and I would hazzard a guess at 10 -15 grand a week! I'm probably way off the mark.<p>It would be interesting to know what supporters think it costs regarding their respective teams..<p>[ 03 November 2001: This message was edited by: canfan ]</p>

[carjam]

I should say 10 to 15 grand is a bit excessive. That may be the case at Canvey though. I may be wrong but I think that at Gravesend the ground rent is nominal. The squad is smaller. Do Canvey have any full-time players on their books. A few seasons ago when Steve Portway was scoring 60+ goals a seaon it emerged in the local press that he was said to be recieving £300 a week plus £50 per appearance plus £50 a goal. These figures were denied by the club. However he was a special case. If that figure was anything close to being normal your 10 grand would be close. I should think the best way to work it out may be to look at the attendances and add the figures up. Clubs cannot run at a loss for long at this level.<p>Carjam

[Guest]

<img src="graemlins/achso.gif" border="0" alt="" />

I would have thought you were both well off beam here. I estimate that our expenses, in view of the fact that we own our ground, would be in the region of 150k per year which over a 38 week season would equate to less than four thousand per week. Maybe the likes of Aldershot and Canvey pay out a lot more than this, which doesn't bother me at all, and no doubt some haven't even got that amount to spend. Just shows what a great leveler football is... <img src="graemlins/diabolo.gif" border="0" alt="" />

[Guest]

<img src="graemlins/20deadflies.gif" border="0" alt="[20deadflies]" />

I don't think you should be under any illusions Canfan that without Jeff King and his family finances you would probably still be in the Essex Senior League but as I have said before I have no problem with him using his money in this way and think that this is the year you will get promoted to the Conference. As Mr. King is a 'Canvey' man, irrespective of the football, I doubt he will pull the plug on his 'hobby' leaving you high and dry unlike people who put money into a team with whom they have no natural affinity. At Braintree we are happy to progress at a leasurely pace and look forward to joining you in the near future. I do however hope we 'stuff' you next Saturday. . <img src="graemlins/images/icons/rolleyes.gif" border="0" alt="[rolleyes]" /> <img src="graemlins/images/icons/rolleyes.gif" border="0" alt="[rolleyes]" />

[Simon BTFC]

I seem to recall that when Liam Cutbush left Heybridge, the reason was that the playing budget was to be cut from around the £3000 mark. Most teams have a playing budget somewhere in the region of £3-4k. Any other expenses, floodlights, refs expenses etc would be nominal, so I would estimate that, depending on any ground rent, a competitive club could be run on £5k a week. The likes of Harrow or Heybridge could squeeze by on say £3500.

[Guest]

Think Grays is more £2,500

[canfan]

I have no doubt that Canvey spend that bit more on players, and I suppose trying to tally a guess 10 grand was a bit much and thinking about it would probably be closer to the 5 grand mark,

The reason I have asked is pure curiousity and in the unlikly event we lose Jeff King how this would effect Canveys future, as it has been said in previous threads that we would not be where we are today without a money man,I personaly disagree with that,(but then I would wouldn't I), but felt the subject has to be given serious discussion all be it not just Canvey but other clubs that have may have finacial backing, where would they be? could they really survive without it? could they sustain a promotion? or could it be <img src="graemlins/cooked.gif" border="0" alt="" /><p>[ 03 November 2001: This message was edited by: canfan ]</p>

[Ali (K's)]

Before we released nine players from the first team squad, our wage bill was somewhere between £10-15k, which despite our off-field income was clearly a primary reason for ever-increasing losses.

[Guest]

You people are on a different planet from me and from supporters of countless other clubs around the Rymans League (which, lest you forget comprises of four divisions).<p>Our weekly wage bill is less than £800 per week and yet we only compete one division below your teams - OK so our recent results probably reflect the difference in our respective clubs' resources. However, over the last few years we have beaten a significant number of Premier Division clubs in various competitions. <p>Is all this money you have really well spent, and where does it all come from? Our finances come almost entirely from bar receipts. We don't have these wealthy businessmen who seem to be bank-rolling clubs all over the Premier Division (and even the lower division - see Lewes and Croydon Athletic). <p>Can you people honestly say your squad is worth the money being chucked at it? Or does it merely mirror the sick state of football where success must be gained at any expense? <p>How sustainable is your wage bill? <p>How many more Kingstonians are there waiting to happen?

[Ali (K's)]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr>Is all this money you have really well spent, and where does it all come from?<hr></blockquote><p>Whether the money is well spent - you can ask that question throughout football. Are players worth what they earn? Yet the underlining fact is that the snowball effect from overly-ambitious clubs means such wages often become necessary to attract the better players. <p>We're lucky that our facilities are good and include three contrasting bars. The rooms provide most of our income, as we're pretty inept when it comes to stuff like marketing. It's always the same few loyal companies who share every sponsorship opportunity we have. <p>

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr>How sustainable is your wage bill? How many more Kingstonians are there waiting to happen?<hr></blockquote><p>I've already pointed out how despite the restructuring promises, our wage bill for the new season seemed to match what was the "seventh highest in the Conference." It's still higher than a lot of the Premier, but at least it's now sustainable - that is, as long as we survive (signs are good). <p>Dover are totally out of money, Farnborough may be 'blessed' with the wealth of Westley, but are still in administration. In the Ryman Premier, aren't St Albans in administration? Also, the vibes coming out of Hampton and Sutton suggest that the financial situation is very bad. <p>Clubs at are level are in a nasty position now. Football is becoming a money-hungry game, but as wages rise, non-league clubs simply can't increase their incomes without the double-edged sword of bringing in a wealthy businessman...

[David Holden]

I seem to recall that the plans was to bring your wage bill down to 5K per week.<p>That is still about twice what most clubs in this division spend, and I suspect that there will be a further clear out at Kingsmeadow before the year is out.

[Badger]

All too true, Ali. Some clubs chasing promotion appear to spend way too much on players to ensure they finish first. Then, when it doesn't happen, they've got no money left, and have to sell off the players again. This happens at all levels, but is harder to recover from for non-league teams.

[Ali (K's)]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by Dave GNFC:

<strong>I seem to recall that the plans was to bring your wage bill down to 5K per week.<p>That is still about twice what most clubs in this division spend, and I suspect that there will be a further clear out at Kingsmeadow before the year is out.</strong><hr></blockquote><p>I was told that our wage bill was near 15k before we released the players last month. However, when thinking about things, I'd hazard a guess that we finished last season on 15k and had it down to about 10k after losing our big names in the summer and replacing them with more appropriate contracts. <p>Looking at the nine players we released (some most unfortunately), I'd say that we cut up to 4k from the wage bill, leaving us on about 6k right now. Even so, that's a pretty big wage for a squad now half made up of youth/reserve players. Thiogs never do add up, 'cos I was also told that the younger players are on the same contracts they had before their promotions...<p>I really can't see any more cuts to the playing squad. The administrator realises that our crowd numbers can be heaviliy influenced by a successful side, and we've been told that we're not running at a loss anymore...

[Guest]

Wealdstone's weekly wage bill is £1,100 a week. Last season, it was £350 a week. This is due to cost cutting measures to preserve funds for the new stadium. £1,100 a week in div one is still nowhere near enough to build a side capable of a sustained promotion challenge.<p>Incidently, our wage bill is funded solely by supporters as the club has sod all money left.

[Guest]

Our players weren't paid at all for the second half of last season due to the bad weather adversely affecting, nay, obliterating our income. <p>About 80-90% of our income comes in on Saturday home matchdays and the weather meant most of our home games at the end of the season were played on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays etc. and in three instances away from home (at Yeading, Thame and Worthing)