While it may be a shock that Arsenal are top of the Premier League table at the World Cup break, the club's financial results carried few surprises. The Gunners announced a loss of £45.5million for the year ending in May 2022, which despite being a blow is a significant improvement on their loss of £107.3million from the year prior.
The primary factor that the club have pointed to when explaining the loss is the lack of European football in the red half of north London for the first time in 25 years. While smart moves by Edu such as the lowering of the club's wage bill by £32.1million and the return of fans to stadiums after COVID helped soften the blow it's no secret that the trappings of UEFA competition are among the most lucrative that football has to offer.
As things stand Arsenal look on track to address this. They sit 16 points clear of Brighton who occupy the final European place available via the Premier League table in seventh. Stan and Josh Kroenke though will be hoping for more.
