The Bundesliga on Thursday announced a record turnover of €3.24B for the '15-16 season, up by almost 24% compared to a year earlier "thanks to a rise in media and advertising revenues as well as transfer cash," according to Karolos Grohmann of REUTERS. The German Football League (DFL), which is responsible for running the country's top two divisions, said that turnover increased by 23.7%, up from €2.62B. For the first time, 13 of 18 top division clubs posted turnover of €100M or more each in the league's 12th consecutive year of growth, with a total profit of €206.2M. Media revenues rose from €731M to €933M, while advertising was up by €100M to €772M (REUTERS, 1/26). ESPN.com's Stephan Uersfeld reported growth "was posted in all revenue areas," with revenue from transfers rising by 131% from €230M to €532.6M. Clubs also spent €512M on transfers, up from €373.6M last term. The 18 Bundesliga clubs invested a total of €110.9M into their youth academies and reserve teams, up from €93.9M in '14-15. The league's advertising revenue made up 23.81% of the aggregate with €772.5M, and despite the "still high attendance numbers," the match revenue fell behind the revenue from transfers and was "only the fourth largest contributor" with €527.6M (ESPN.com, 1/26).
