Posh announce a near £3.5 million loss

That’s a bigger loss by over £2 million on the previous year (£1,374,873) and can be more than accounted for by a stark difference in player sales.

The accounts for the year ending June 30, 2019 included over £4.4 million in player sales. The 2020 accounts include player sales of £556k, but the reported transfer of Ivan Toney to Brentford for an eventual fee of £10 million has not been included in the latest accounts. That transfer was complete at the end of August.

The million-pound signings of Jonson Clarke-Harris and Sammie Szmodics are also not included in the latest accounts along with any other summer signings. Jack Taylor’s £500k fee is included, although clubs now tend to spread the cost of transfers over the length of a playing contract.

Football for Posh shut down in March 2020 and resumed in September, but without crowds and without the commercial opportunities normally available, a worrying set of circumstances which will be reflected in the June, 2021 accounts.

Turnover at Posh for the year ending June 2020 was £7,234,714, up 11.1% on the previous year.

Staffing costs rose by 16% to over £6.2 million.

Posh continue to function thanks to the generous support and financial backing of co-owners Darragh MacAnthony, Dr Jason Neale and Stewart Thompson.