Press Release

RECESSION HITS PREMIERSHIP CLUBS

Equifax reveals the latest Credit Ratings for the Top Premiership Football Clubs

London, 29th May 2009 - Excessive debt and enormous wages for players are now leaving clubs in the English Premiership Football League financially vulnerable. As some of the biggest clubs strain to meet loan commitments and banks may be less willing to give waivers or inject more capital, football is clearly in the same boat as every other business.

As the season comes to an end Equifax, the leading business information provider, has reassessed the credit scores for the Premiership football clubs, compared to their scores at the beginning of 2009. Even with over a third of clubs increasing their score in the 5 month period, more than half are still considered to be insolvent.

"Andy Burnham, the culture secretary, has recently commented that football is at a crossroads and needs to 'reassess its relationship with money'", commented Neil Munroe, External Affairs Director, Equifax. "And our Equifax ScoreCheck review of the Premiership Club credit ratings certainly sends some warning bells about the Clubs who could be facing financial difficulty for the next season."

Manchester United is on top form, not only within the Premier League but its credit rating has increased from 93 points to full marks (100 points). Fellow top teams in the League, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea, have not seen any change in their score.

Declining dramatically in the Equifax ScoreCheck table are Tottenham Hotspurs, Manchester City and Stoke City. However, West Ham, currently up for sale, has maintained its score of 37 out of 100.

Despite being relegated at the weekend, West Bromwich Albion (WBA) improved the most in Equifax's credit rating table with 78 points, putting it just ahead of Blackburn Rovers on 68 points. Newcastle and Middlesbrough, also relegated at the weekend, both already have very low scores. And whilst they will receive parachute payments worth around £11m there is a clear question mark over whether the prospect of selling their best players and moving down a league will have an impact on their credit rating next season.

Clubs rely on revenue streams from ticket sales and merchandising. However, consumers are still not spending* as much as they have been, which can impact heavily on a club's bottom line. Indeed, a recent survey** by Virgin's Inflation Index, which shows the average cost of a shirt across all leagues is £27.50 found that 19% of football fans said they would not buy as much merchandise next season. The relatively high cost of annual Season Tickets could also be an issue. Although a number of clubs have placed a freeze on prices for next season, the average cost for an annual season ticket is still over £500.

"As the recession continues to cast a shadow over businesses, the world of football should not consider itself immune" continued Neil Munroe. "A loss in revenue from season tickets, corporate hospitality and commercial sponsorships will all have a major impact on a club's financial status, with many potentially facing a tough 2009/2010 season."

	Jan 09		May 09
Club	Score out of 100	Insolvent	Score out of 100

Man Utd	93		100	UP
WBA	71		78	UP
Blackburn Rovers	43		68	UP
Fulham	2	Yes	20	UP
Newcastle Utd	5	Yes	12	UP
Aston Villa	2	Yes	10	UP
Portsmouth	0	Yes	2	UP
Arsenal	98		98	SAME
Sunderland	37		37	SAME
West Ham	37		37	SAME
Liverpool	26		26	SAME
Everton	18	Yes	18	SAME
Chelsea	10	Yes	10	SAME
Middlesbrough	7	Yes	7	SAME
Bolton Wanderers	5	Yes	5	SAME
Wigan Athletic	2	Yes	2	SAME
Hull City	1	Yes	1	SAME
Tottenham	65		50	DOWN
Manchester City	40		27	DOWN
Stoke City	17	Yes	2	DOWN

Equifax ScoreCheck
Equifax ScoreCheck delivers a dynamic score for all limited companies based on all the information available. It examines a number of financial indicators, which build a complete picture of a company’s risk status. These include:
· Accounts Data
· Age of Accounts
· Trading Stability
· Profitability
· Working Capital
· Gearing
· Legal and Court Information

Guide to ScoreCheck Grades
ScoreCheck calculates risk based upon a scale of 0 to 100; the lower the Score the higher the credit risk.

ScoreCheck Ratings & Grades
95 - 100 A+
85 - 94 A
80 - 84 A-
75 - 79 B+
70 - 74 B
65 - 69 B-
60 - 64 C+
55 - 59 C
50 - 54 C-
45 - 49 D+
40 - 44 D
35 - 39 D-
30 - 34 E+
25 - 29 E
20 – 24 E-
15 - 19 F+
5 - 14 F
0 - 4 F-

ScoreCheck codes
A Very Good Score
B Good Score
C Higher Than Average Score
D Average Score
E Lower Than Average Score
F Low Score

* Spending by British households fell at the fastest rate since 1980 in the first three months of the year, official figures showed (May 22nd 2009) Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS)

** Virgin Money Survey of 4,000 fans across 125 clubs including all premiership clubs

ENDS

For further press information please contact: Elinor Puzey, Louise Fowler, Cecile Stearn or Wendy Harrison at HSL on 020 8977 9132 / Fax: 020 8977 5200 or Email: elinor@harrisonsadler.com