Every Premier League club's total profit or loss during Daniel Levy’s time at Tottenham offers a fascinating insight into how well - or poorly - each top-flight club has been run. For all the progress the now-relieved Spurs chairman may have slowed, he also achieved a great deal for the north London side.
Levy can quite rightly claim to have “moneyballed” his way into helping the club maintain a healthier financial footing. He oversaw the move from White Hart Lane to the state-of-the-art Tottenham Hotspur Stadium - arguably one of the finest stadiums in the Premier League - while presiding over some of the most exciting teams in the club’s history.
Yet, when it came to pushing Spurs over the finishing line and into the next stage of their development, things often seemed to stall. Tottenham frequently looked poised for greatness, yet never quite managed to smash through the glass ceiling, particularly in the post-Pochettino era. But what about the rest of the league during that time? There are plenty of surprises - and some obvious howlers - among the most profitable clubs in England’s top flight since 2001, as per a report from The Sun.
For unknown reasons, Burnley and Brentford weren't included in the study.
How Profitable Every PL Club Has Been Over the Last 25 Years
At the very bottom of the financial scale, it comes as no surprise that Chelsea record the biggest deficit. Their extravagant spending under both Roman Abramovich and Todd Boehly has seen losses mount to a staggering £1.257 billion - nearly double that of any other club.
This follows them featuring three times in a list of the 10 most expensive transfer windows, with their free-spending, risk-taking philosophy acting as a flagbearer for the money-driven era of the Premier League.
Aston Villa are surprisingly next on £706 million, with this likely a result of them spending big on arrivals without ever really being able to recoup a lot of that money through sales. While Jack Grealish, Jhon Duran, and Moussa Diaby allowed them a lot of wriggle room, no other sales over the last 25 years have given them £50 million or more, often leaving them struggling to contend with PSR rules.
Since the 1990s, Everton has experienced frequent changes in ownership and management, resulting in a lack of long-term strategic planning. This instability has hindered the club's ability to implement consistent financial strategies and achieve sustainable growth.
The construction of a new stadium while the team battled relegation dogfights is a prime example of financial mismanagement, though their new Texas-based ownership appears to be taking steps to reverse some of that long-term collateral damage.
Pep Guardiola has enjoyed being one of the very few managers operating with a seemingly bottomless pit of gold since his appointment as Manchester City boss in 2016. His trial-and-error freedom in the transfer market has seen him spend upwards of £550 million on goalkeepers and defenders alone - yet he still appears to have gaps in those areas. This partly explains why the Cityzens have accumulated losses of £553 million over the last 25 years, with their rise to prominence anything but a mystery.
For years, Fulham fans hated their owner, Shahid Khan, and his entire family for buying them in 2013 for £200m and instantly relegating them. Going through three different managers in his debut season in charge didn't exactly help fix any broken bridges, while things at one point got so poisonous that the club's vice-chairman told the fans to "go to hell" on Twitter. While the football on the pitch has stabilised things recently, clearly the books still need to be balanced at Craven Cottage.
Considering the dystopian cost-cutting strategies Sir Jim Ratcliffe and co. have been implementing at Old Trafford after inheriting over £650 million in debt upon their takeover, many would surely expect Manchester United to rank much worse on this list.
All things considered, however, a deficit of £261 million raises questions about whether the hierarchy have been misleading the staff they made redundant, especially when clubs deeper in the red zone aren’t facing the same issues.
As of the 2023/24 financial year (ending July 2024), Sunderland reported its 18th consecutive pre-tax loss, amounting to £8.6 million, despite some revenue growth and profits from player sales.
This pattern of unprofitability dates back to at least 2001, with the club described as a "financial basket case" due to decades of mismanagement, overspending, and underperformance on and off the pitch, which saw them topple all the way down to League One as recently as the 2020/21 campaign.
While Sunderland struggled to manage their finances effectively, Bournemouth provide a prime example of how powerful ownership can be used as a springboard to success. Between 2009 and 2015, Eddie Howe guided the Cherries through three promotions, establishing them as a Premier League mainstay.
In 2011, Russian businessman Maxim Demin acquired a 50% stake, taking full control by 2013, and their financial backing clearly played a key role in Bournemouth’s dramatic rise through the English football pyramid, though their business has been shrewd since being in the big time.
Crystal Palace's financial journey since 2001 has been marked by periods of severe distress, administration, recovery, and relative stability, particularly with their sustained Premier League presence since 2013. The club’s finances reflect a combination of ownership changes, fluctuating revenues due to promotions and relegations, and strategic shifts toward sustainability.
But recovery has been sweet, culminating in an FA Cup and Community Shield double over this summer, with the Holmesdale faithful now sure that they've outgrown current chairman Steve Parish.
Wolves are owned by Chinese conglomerate Fosun International, who bought the club from long-time owner Steve Morgan in 2016. Fosun is made up of three controlling businessmen, co-founders Gui Guangchang, Liang Xinjun and Wang Qunbin, who between them have an estimated net worth of nearly $7bn (£5.4bn).
Under their tenure, the club has established itself as a Premier League stalwart, remaining in the top flight since 2018 and finishing in European spots on multiple occasions. It’s baffling, however, that despite their success in the 2010s—and their consistent sale of star players—they are still losing more money than they are earning.
West Ham arguably has the most complex fan-ownership dynamic in the league. Under the controversial leadership of Sullivan, Kretinsky, and Gold, the club has made numerous missteps. From the decision to uproot the team from their iconic Boleyn Ground to the soulless confines of the London Stadium spaceship, to the perception that the club has often lacked ambition, the past 15 years haven’t been kind to the east London side, and their finances, though not the worst, point to that.
Both West Ham and Newcastle share something in common: they believe they should be competing in the upper reaches of the Premier League table. But with the Magpies still operating below the profitability threshold and constantly battling the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR), there’s only so much they can do financially. Even so, Eddie Howe continues to guide them into European competition despite these constraints.
Over the last 25 years, Leeds United have spent a grand total of just three seasons in the Premier League. It is then no surprise that their profitability is nowhere near as bad as other clubs in the division, with them spending slightly more than they can afford in a desperate attempt to achieve safety.
They've slowly built their way back up from the ground following financial meltdown in 2004 and administration in 2008, as proven by the fact they are now looking at renovating Elland Road.
The final Premier League club operating at a loss is Nottingham Forest. High wages from the 2023/24 campaign, coupled with a hectic transfer window that saw them sign an astonishing 30 players over the summer, are likely the root cause of their negative spending.
However, with a more cautious approach in place - and now competing in European competition - they have almost managed to break even. If their current savvy strategy continues, they could achieve just that.
The only club to have won the Premier League in the last two decades while remaining profitable is Liverpool, who have managed it twice during a period in which they made £19 million. This is despite a summer transfer window in which they broke the British transfer fee record twice to sign Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak.
While Arsenal haven’t matched Liverpool’s achievements over the past 25 years, the fact that they’ve remained profitable while consistently challenging for the Premier League title is impressive. It makes you wonder what they could accomplish under a more free-spending ownership like Chelsea or Manchester City, where managers are given virtually unlimited funds to win.
It's remarkable, too, that both the Reds and the Gunners have seen massive improvements to their stadiums and training grounds without breaking the bank.
Brighton excel at making the most of what they already have. They boast an outstanding youth network, and the hierarchy always seems to know which manager to bring in when the current boss inevitably uses the south coast club as a stepping stone. The Seagulls have made over £205 million in profit from player sales to Chelsea alone since the summer of 2022, with their overall profit from player sales over the last three seasons (2021–2024) reaching approximately £294 million.
