EPL Swansea City is "set to announce" a £14.6M ($23.5M) profit from its debut season in the Premier League, according to the PA. The club, which finished 11th in the top flight last season, had a turnover of £65.2M ($105M) for the year ending May 31. The "strong set of figures" showed the Swans received £5M ($8M) in compensation payments from Liverpool for the departure of Manager Brendan Rodgers and his staff, with the club "in the black despite increased operating costs and higher wage bill" as a result of their promotion to the Premier League (PA, 10/16). FCBUSINESS wrote that while the extent and timing of a capital investment program "relies heavily on the club’s ability to remain in the Premier League," progress has already been made on the £2.5M ($4M) Landore training ground development. Swansea has also created a partnership with Swansea University, which "involves the acquisition of a long-term lease" of the playing fields at Fairwood, which is "expected to provide a first class training complex befitting a Premier League club" (FCBUSINESS.co.uk, 10/16).
MODEL FOR SUCCESS: In London, Phil Cadden wrote, "If there was a league table for financial success then Swansea City would be challenging for Manchester City's Premier League title." While the Manchester clubs and Liverpool "use the foreign owner approach," Swansea, which is debt-free, has "a unique style." The Swansea City Supporters Trust has a "significant" 19.9% share of the club. Chair Huw Jenkins believes the club's "home-grown structure and supporter-owned model, which was the first seen in the top flight, is the envy for even those competing for Champions League places." Jenkins said: "I think we are a blueprint. If we can work our way to the top of the British game this way, it will give everyone else connected with football a genuine lift" (INDEPENDENT, 10/16).
