The price of AFCB's success

Last weekend AFCB fans were told the news by the Bournemouth Echo that the club had total losses of £39.1m in the 2014-15 season which included a £7.6m fine for breaking the financial fair play (FFP) rules. The real eye-opener on where the money has gone came in staff wages which were up to £30.4m.

The figures were not unexpected to be fair, but they are amounts that would have been unimaginable for the club to be able to cope with only a couple of years ago. Now that the club sits in the Premier League, I suppose those losses will soon be balanced by the new TV income that will flood into the club this summer. Still, it underlines that it was a decision made to try and win promotion from the Championship knowing that the club would mount up some big losses in the short term and the fans can now see why Maxim Demin is owed such a lot of thanks for allowing the club to operate with his financial backing under such conditions.

Rising up the leagues comes at a cost.

It still baffled me why FFP is considered as a mechanism why when clubs spend too much unfairly they are slapped with more fines, but I suppose every club knows the rules and will make their own decisions on whether they want to cross that line or not. It is all about attracting the best players to come and play for the club and while the wages have rocketed there should be some management to ensure that the club operates within its means now that it has reached the top table. 

Was it worth it? You bet, yeah! A year ago today.

I am sure the fans and the owners want another push in time to become a club that might even challenge for silverware and a place in Europe in coming years, but it is not a backwards step to have a period of stabilisation and maintaining Premier League status for a couple of years. That in itself will soak up much of the new funds coming into the club. AFCB can't run up front with the Arsenal's Man Utd and Man City just yet, but it can play against them on the field and as a fan that is already beyond my wildest dreams. 

There is always another side of the story though and had the club failed to win promotion from the Championship within a couple of more years it would have had to contend with even greater financial losses. The speed of AFCB climb up the leagues is what has helped make success more financially manageable in the short term.

Cherries on Top

Sponsored Article

I am pleased to be able to say that we have a guest column today on Cherry Chimes. To share some wisdom over the festive season and before the January transfer window, freelance journalist Matthew Harris has kindly prepared this article to give an update to Championship supporters that might be surprised at AFC Bournemouth's rise to see what might be in store for our beloved south coast club in the season. It's over to you Matthew.

There’s not many amongst even the most hopeful of Bournemouth fans that could honestly say that they are where they expected to be at this point of the season. Having topped the league in December and made a quarter final appearance in the League Cup is surely cause for some to wonder, when they will wake up from this amazing dream?

Well Deserved
But as true as it is that the final table never lies, Bournemouth are not in what could be called a ‘false position’ and their position in the Championship betting market is fully deserved. The Cherries set the tone with an opening day thrashing of Huddersfield away and have not looked back since. At various points in the five months of the season naysayers have predicted the wheels to fall off but they are still going strong – never more so than the 8-0 demolition of Birmingham in October. But can Bournemouth keep this phenomenal form going? And can they achieve the unthinkable and get promoted to the promised land of the...

Premier League?
Although Bournemouth’s rise from the financial depths has been well documented there are obviously much bigger clubs – with much bigger budgets – that could make their presence felt in the second half of the season. And even with the recent news that three of the big boys of the division – Blackburn, Leeds and Forest – have been handed transfer embargoes for the rest of the season for breaching Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules, the Championship is hardly a level playing field when it comes to wealth.

It is questionable whether Bournemouth need to change their plans radically to keep up the pace in the division however. There had been rumours that they would fail the new FFP but the club have spent a comparatively meagre £11million assembling their table topping side. And assistant manager Jason Tindall has recently declared that Bournemouth would not be splashing out in January – or any other transfer window for that matter.

Dan Gosling is an experienced Premier League who can help the Cherries make the step up.

Squad
Callum Wilson has been a revelation since his move from Coventry City in the summer, scoring eleven goals in all appearances. Add to that the Premier league experience of Andrew Surman and Dan Gosling, signed from Norwich and Newcastle respectively, and there seems little manager Eddie Howe needs to do to bolster the squad to continue the good form into the New Year.

It was a key signing to bring Andrew Surman back to the Goldsands Stadium.

An obvious confidence boost would be to secure the permanent signing of Polish goalkeeper Artur Boruc though. A keeper with such formidable top level experience could become invaluable for the Championship run in.

Artur Boruc is possibly the only transfer target for the Cherries in January.

Possible Additions?
Bournemouth’s defence has played a major role in the side’s success but it has been further up the pitch that the team have excelled. The Cherries are the top scorers in the league and those goals have been shared throughout the squad. Wilson is the top goal scorer with 12 goals so far (before the Blackpool match). As for additions, Burnley’s Danny Ings has been heavily linked with a return to the club he left a few years ago, but even with Burnley finding life tough in the top division it is unlikely that Ings would drop a level at this stage of the season – and the cut in wages that that would surely involve.

Another player linked with the club is DJ Campbell who, after being released by QPR, has been plying his trade at non league Maidenhead United. His experience of playing at a higher level – and goal scoring ability – could be beneficial to the club as the season draws to a close.

If anything Eddie Howe may find that it is Bournemouth that will be fending off transfer requests for some of their stars. Steve Cook has been linked with Leicester, Palace and West Brom and other players such as Marc Pugh and the aforementioned Wilson will surely be attracting Premier League clubs desperately looking for a boost to their own squads in January.

AFCB half season ticket sell out is no surprise

The pick up in half season ticket holders this year has been great to see. To think that I wondered how well the half season tickets would do when AFCB were finding it difficult to get a run going before the Capital One match against Cardiff. But things change quickly and the good run has seen all the half season season tickets quickly snapped up, even though they don't include a ticket for the fifth round of the Capital One Cup against Liverpool.

The need for a seat for the second half of the season 
has proved too tempting for many fans who usually by on the day.

At first I was surprised at the amount of interest in the half season tickets and then Michael Dunne of the All Departments' podcast pointed out to me that it would guarantee those supporters the chance of being offered a season ticket for next season, if they wanted to retain their seat. Of course that just might mean Premier League football - I know we might be getting ahead of ourselves here. Still that thought will have boosted ticket sales for the second half of this season and with a full house most weeks that should give a little more impetuous to the players to do even better if that is possible.

Thoughts about what the club is going to do over the summer regarding the stadium and crowd numbers is going to become a hot topic in the coming months, because another good cup run in the FA Cup holds the likelihood of another big tie at some point and very few seats to accommodate everyone. Whether the club can attract more home fans just with staying in the Championship is what may be giving the management a headache at the moment, as there is no knowing what clubs will go up yet. 

I think the South stand has been a tremendous success and has made the ground really special for us supporters who have endured the three stand ground for so many years. Building a permanent stand there though as a copy of the North stand is a likely outcome if it is decided that more seats are needed, but depending on where the club is next season they need several scenarios ready to go. Listen to the current All Departments' podcast to hear what some of those solutions could be.

The Financial Fair Play rules for the Championship 2015-16 season allow for £2m losses if the owner invests up to £13m. I believe infrastructure spending is exempt from FFP, but the club will still have to find the funds from somewhere to pay for ground developments. If the club stays in the Championship some funds are likely to still go into ground development, but what that means in terms of numbers of seats or preparing for safe standing is very much up for discussion still. AFCB also need to raise other revenue streams though, especially if they are staying put in the Championship. Extra ticket sales are a help but the team will also need funding if it is to keep improving.

Good luck to Baily Cargill today, who is all set to hopefully make his England U20 debut at Dean Court against Canada in a friendly.

Match Preview: Cherry Chimes talks to Voice of Bolton

Rival Lines
Match Preview
Bolton Wanderers v AFCB
Blogger Interview: Voice of Bolton

Cherry Chimes chats with Anis, managing editor of Voice of Bolton, to preview the Bolton away game and to find out what is happening with this great northern team, who are certainly struggling at present. We try and put the finger on exactly where the problems are and look at whether Bolton are finding it harder to play at home or away, or perhaps they are just finding it hard no matter where they play.

CC: What are expectations for most Bolton fans this season in terms of a league finishing position?

VOB: We guess it’s fair to say that we were hoping for some major progress this season. However, so far it doesn’t seem like we’re going to have that ‘great’ season we have been desperate for. If you asked us before the season had kicked off, we would have confidently stated a top 10 position. Play-offs for us this season would have been quite a dream, but you can’t over confidently believe that a club such as ours that has struggled somewhat for a few years now is going to start the season in 5th gear and be near the top of the table come December.

Now, it looks like we’re going to be drifting in and out of the relegation zone. Some belief for a Bolton fan huh?

CC: Is Dougie Freedman making much progress at Bolton in terms of performances if not the points?

When Dougie took over the club, he had his critics – a fair few Bolton fans believed that he wasn’t the right guy for the job. They were at the time in the minority, out voiced. Now it seems that they had the foresight to see something most Bolton fans couldn’t. The belief has somewhat deteriorated, mainly this season. We have one win and two draws from nine games – that is hardly the start any team needs. However, Dougie has baffled the entire fanbase by defending some performances this season. What’s even more confusing is that how he can play with one upfront when this particular formation had proved costly for over a season or so.

You would clearly question the tactical intelligence of the current Bolton manager. The fanbase for one can see it is a pointless task sticking with the same formation week in, week out.

CC: Where does the team need strengthening or are you happy with last summer's signings?

VOB: At this present moment in time – the whole squad bar a few need to be replaced. We lack the strength up front. Joe Mason is with us on loan once more. He has what it takes to deliver goals, but he needs a strike partner – as he had in Lukas Jutkiewicz. The midfield look clueless. Spearing has been very ineffective. The other players don’t look like they’re Championship quality at all. Dean Moxey looks out of his depth, whereas we haven’t been able to sort out a decent centre-back pairing as of yet. We look very fragile at the back.

Last but not least, Andy Lonergan has, so far, been outstanding. However, this can only last for so long. The team need to man up and start being responsible! We have seen better football from League One / Two sides!

CC: Do you fear that things could deteriorate with the Financial Fair Play penalties being dished out to clubs that overspend?

We are already suffering as a result. We have had a self-imposed embargo on transfers, which possibly is down to the amount of debt we have. It is fair to say Dougie has had no opportunity to bring players of some quality in as those players cost money – which is something we have not got at present. All of our signings so far have been either loans or free agents. Without spending anything, you are likely to be dealing with other team’s scraps.

We can understand why there is such a thing as Financial Fair Play, however with clubs in the lower tiers already struggling – it’s adding weight and looks set to kill the game (if the Premier League and Sky don’t get there first).

CC: Who has impressed you most in a Bolton shirt this season?

VOB: Andy Lonergan in goal. He has been amazing! Nothing more to say on this – let’s hope he carries on like this for a long time!

CC: Joe Mason had a great game against Rotherham - is he getting to grips with the Championship?

He seems to be a decent Championship player. However Joe’s game gets better when he is paired up with feeding striker. He is sure to deliver goals with more game time.

CC: Why have you failed to win away yet?

Poor performances. Players don’t seem to have any confidence in themselves – they’re too reliant on each other to do the job for them. Tactical ignorance from the manager and much more.

CC: Could the team have been scoring more goals at home?

VOB: Of course. Any home side should be scoring more at home. However, this doesn’t seem to be the case for us. We don’t have the kind of free scoring players in the team at all.

CC: How has our old AFCB winger Liam Feeney been playing?

VOB: Feeney has been fairly OK. It feels like he hasn’t embedded into the club as well as we’d expect. Hopefully this will change over time.

CC: How do you think Bolton will try and get at Bournemouth?

VOB: We hope they try to get all 3 points, but the way things are currently going – we’re hoping we don’t get hammered!

CC: I'm almost afraid to ask -what is your score prediction for the game?

VOB: We’ll happily take a 1 – 1 draw!

CC: I think that is the most honest and heartfelt comments that we have had from a blogger on Rival Lines. It is always hard when your team is not going well and Bolton fans must be looking anywhere they can for some inspiration. That would seem to be watching keeper Andy Lonergon and I guess fingers are crossed that he does not get injured. I am sure though that AFCB playing at the Macron stadium is a match that the Bolton manager and players would expect to be able to win, and it may well be a match where the first goal will win the game as I can see Bolton's crowd really getting behind them if they get it or turning on their manager if AFCB get it.

I want to thank Anis for his frank opinions on the Bolton team and do visit Voice of Bolton to see what else he has been writing about on his favourite team.

How much is Eddie going to have to spend?

This summer looks like a real stepping stone for AFCB as they look to ensure that the foundations are in place for a team that can not only be stable in the Championship but has a good chance of reaching the play-offs. For that to happen it is likely that Eddie Howe will need to spend and fairly big. But how much is Maxim Demin willing to back him? And can the potential player sales that the club completes offer enough funds to get like-for-like or better replacements?

Will the financial fair play barrier stop Eddie Howe from
spending as much as he or the club would like?

The Financial Fair Play rules are not going to make it possible for the Cherries to splash out as they may have liked to. I can't see enough money coming in through the regular business (yes - those season tickets) and player sales to see substantial spending this summer, so Eddie Howe is going to have to recruit very wisely and maybe a little of the radar of the normal channels. While his foreign pickings of Mohammed Coulibaly and Tokelo Rantie have not made an immediate impact it is not particularly easy to get bargains in England anymore. The free transfer of Dan Gosling is great business and while I see lots of Championship clubs releasing players they are often the players that have not made the grade or are coming to the end of their careers.

Scotland is becoming more popular as an area of picking up talent and the club has already profited from Ryan Fraser's arrival. The Irish contingent at the club is also strong now and while many of us don't get to see much football from such places, AFCB's eyes are definitely tracking players in places that are much more distant these days. This may mean that Eddie Howe can get more for his money but how far would say £3 million get you these days? At Championship level it would probably be one or two players. Somehow though I think Eddie Howe will need to pick up four or five new players. With the club's financial losses mounting as well I would be surprised if the budget is any bigger than this.

Having already shelled out £750,000 on new pitches the generosity of Maxim Demin continues to push the club forward. Generating more income though is the best way for the club to sustain its status and that could mean turning over a good few players - it's going to be a busy summer.

Price rise and player sales unlikely to slow season ticket demand

The 2013/14 season tickets are to go on sale to current AFCB season ticket holders on Wednesday 21 May and while AFCB have tried to keep prices down supporters are in for a 20 per cent increase on last seasons prices across the board. The club will be hoping that not only all of the regular seat warmers at Dean Court sign up again, but that a whole host of new fans sign up for the first time after 2 June.  To play Championship football comes at a price, especially with gates as low as 10,000 compared to 25,000 of the top clubs and some of the cost is  being put into the season ticket price following modest prices last year. AFCB have to try and up their income to offset the Financial Fair Play rules and it was probably to be expected that the club would ask fans to back them as they aim higher. A full list of the prices can be found on the club's official website. 

The potential loss of Lewis Grabban will not make much of a dent in the number of season ticket holders and even with a much changed team, fans will be looking forward to see what a line up with a few new Cherries would be able to achieve under Eddie Howe. Dan Gosling should be the first of several new signings this summer.

Dean Court has seen many full houses of late.

The Championship is where I feel the club should be at the moment and a new adventure is waiting to unfold in August. Before then we can certainly feel that anything is possible and with players perhaps departing it is easy to be a bit uneasy about seeing change again when the Cherries have had such a good season. But all of last season is in the past and we move on. You have the opportunity to buy a season ticket for the next chapter of the story. Some of the lines will be the same and while a few of the players may change, the underlying feel and style of the book will not change. It is time to write some new pages in Bournemouth's history and to reach the next level things have to change some more.

I see the next stage as just another challenge. Just like staying in the league and getting promotion from Leagues Two and One, AFCB have a target and there are probably many ways to go about getting to that next stage. What is crucial though is that the supporters come and the football remains entertaining. I hope that the prices are affordable to families and supporters who were unable to buy more than a few tickets to games last season. In the past few seasons football at Dean Court has been exceptional value and I don't believe the style of play will be any less entertaining in 2014/15. We will get behind the players that wear the shirt and any new supporters to the club we welcome. UTCIAD!

What do you feel about the season ticket price rise? Will you go to less away games or miss some pre-season friendlies to save some cash or will you attend as many games as you can no matter what?

Financial Fair Play in the Champonship

Quite a few AFCB supporters have been questioning what the Financial Fair Play Rules really are how they impact on a teams spending ability for new transfers. I am going to try and give a simple overview with some links for you to follow for more information.

The agreement to introduce Financial Fair Play became operational (monitored) last season and in the Championship you are restricted to the club's losses being less than an acceptable level of deviation (£4m) and Shareholders equity investment (£8m). The first reports were submitted in December 2012 for the 2011-12 season. As we know AFCB had a financial loss of £3.4m in 2012 and Mr Demin invested some £5 or £ 6m as a loan (to be paid back whenever!). I am not sure if other shareholders at AFCB also input further funds. That probably does not give the Cherries much room for manoeuvre before they start incurring sanctions.

That is really what I don't get. If you overspend and you are not sustainable in your finances the league will fine you, giving you a greater financial burden.

The money is equally shared between the teams that have complied with the rules. The fines could be from as little as £1 to as much as £10m.

As the seasons progress the fact that we have a rich owner will have less and less influence on our spending power for players as the amount they can put in each season is gradually reduced.

I hope this gives you some kind of insight but I am not a financial analyst and interpreting the rules is no doubt more detailed than what I have shown here.

You can read more at:
The The Football League website
BBC article on clubs vote in favour of Financial Fair Play

And for UEFA competitions the rules are a bit different:
Financial Fair Play Website showing UEFA fair paly rules