Earlier this month, Albion published their annual accounts for the 2022-23 Premier League campaign. If you’re a Seagulls fan and you’ve not been living under a rock, the chances are you’ll already be aware of the club’s record-high post-tax profits.
But just how do they compare with other clubs in the upper reaches of the Premier League? Below, we’ll compare Brighton’s latest accounts with similar clubs, based on total revenue, before breaking down matchday, commercial and broadcast revenues.
We’ll also explore Brighton’s wage structure and where it sits in the Premier League hierarchy and whether Albion are the undisputed masters of player trading in England’s top-flight.
Total revenue
Brighton’s total revenue reached £204.5 million for 2022-23, which placed Albion as the ninth-highest revenue generators in the Premier League.
This positions the Seagulls as the 16th richest club in the world, with the likes of AC Milan and Leicester turning over £196.3 million and £186.9 million respectively.
The usual suspects of Manchester City, Manchester United and Liverpool were the top three for total revenues, while Brighton’s south coast neighbours, AFC Bournemouth, generated the smallest revenues, followed by Southampton and Nottingham Forest.
Revenues per segment In 2022-23, broadcast revenue equated to more than 75% of Brighton’s total income at £155.2 million.
Matchday income was up £4 million to £24.6 million, although this was much lower than the likes of West Ham (£41 million) and Newcastle (£38 million). Albion’s matchday income was on a par with Leeds and was surprisingly higher than those of Aston Villa and Leicester City.
Average weekly wages
Onto player salaries and it’s clear that Albion continue to get plenty of bang for their buck. Average player salaries in 2022-23 amounted to £59,000 per week.
This was the eighth-lowest average weekly wage in the Premier League – a bottom-half average wage and a top-half Premier League finish shows just how Brighton are managing to thrive.
The likes of West Ham (£63,000), Nottingham Forest (£67,000) and Everton (£73,000) all paid more on player wages than Albion last term. Even relegated Leicester City had average salaries of an eye-watering £88,000 per week.
Wages as % of income
With sustainability increasingly the name of the game in the Premier League, it’s also worth noting Albion fares well in terms of its wages-to-income ratio. Just over three-fifths (62%) of its total revenue was spent on wages.
That’s the seventh-lowest percentage in the league. At the other end of the spectrum, Leicester were guilty of spending 116% of their total revenue on wages.
Net spend on squad
Brighton were one of just three Premier League clubs to generate a positive net spend in the 2022-23 campaign. It was comfortably the highest net spend too, standing at £82 million. Leicester City (£51 million) and Chelsea were the other teams in net positive territory.
It’s also important to note that Brighton’s overall squad cost for 2022-23 was the lowest in the entire league, standing at £164 million.
That’s £4 million cheaper than the second-lowest squad cost at Brentford. All of which goes to show that Albion’s recruitment strategy continues to bear fruit and enable them to punch above their weight.
