Celtic announce six month profit of £34m as revenue rises to £76.5m thanks to Champions League

Celtic’s profits have soared to £34m in the last six month thanks in large part to their Champions League campaign.

The Scottish champions released their interim results for the first half of the season on Friday as they revealed an overall revenue of £76.5m.

The figures represent a significant £20m rise in the figures at the same stage last year when revenue was recorded as £52.9m.

Profits have risen by £6.2m from 2022’s £27.6m that was revealed at this time last year.

In a statement released on Celtic’s website the club’s chairman Peter Lawwell welcomed the results.

He said: “I am honoured to present my first Chairman’s statement on behalf of Celtic Football Club. Being back to chair the club that I have always supported and served for almost 18 years as CEO, is a privilege. I look forward to fulfilling the role, and playing my part in our Club going forward.

“The results for the six months ended 31 December 2022 show revenues of £76.5m (2021: £52.9m) and a profit before taxation of £33.9m (2021: profit before tax of £27.6m). The profit from trading, representing the profit excluding player related gains and charges, amounted to £28.1m (2021: profit of £7.0m).

“The key factors driving the improvement in the underlying trading performance in the six months to 31 December 2022 compared to the same period last year, was the direct qualification to the UEFA Champions League Group stages.

“This was the key driver in our revenue increase over the same period last year which reflected UEFA Europa League Group stage participation. Gains from player trading this year of £1.8m (2021: £25.8m) were notably lower, reflecting our strategy of assembling a new football playing squad under our Football Manager, Ange Postecoglou. Period end net cash at bank was £59.2m (2021: £25.6m).

“After adjusting for a net trading balance on prior inbound and outbound transfers, this sum reduces to £50.2m at December 2022 (2021: £39.7m). The introductory page to these interim results summarises the key events in the period.

“This year is the second season under Ange and the success delivered in season 2021/22 in securing the SPFL title ensured we qualified directly for the UEFA Champions League Group stages for season 2022/23.

“This allowed us to plan and execute our transfer business early. Following from the permanent signings of Daizen Maeda, Cameron Carter-Vickers and Joao Pedro Neves Filipe (Jota), we went on to sign Alexandro Bernabei, Sead Haksabanovic, Aaron Mooy, Benjamin Siegrist and brought in loan signings Oliver Abildgaard and Moritz Jenz.

“As we look ahead, our immediate priority is to secure domestic success for season 2022/23, with a view to progressing into the Champions League Group stages for a second consecutive year. We also wish to build upon the progress made in our Academy and the Women’s team, and are currently exploring development opportunities at our Barrowfield training ground with a view to enhancing the facilities for these squads.

On behalf of the Board, I wish to thank our supporters for their unwavering dedication and support of our Club. I wish to also thank our shareholders and commercial partners for continuing to back the Club as they have done over many years.