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Tynecastle debt rises to £28.4mUK, February 6, 2007 - Debt has risen since Vladimir Romanov took charge at Hearts. Hearts have notified shareholders that the club debt has risen by £6.9m to £28.4m in the last year. Salary costs at Tynecastle have doubled to £10m, up from around £5m the previous year. Hearts recently sold midfielder Paul Hartley to Celtic for £1.1m and could sell keeper Craig Gordon in the summer. However, revenue at Hearts exceeded £10m for the first time in the club's history, largely due to a rise in revenue from increased attendance home matches. Attendances at Tynecastle increased by 34% for domestic and cup competitions when compared to the previous year. Revenue exceeded £10m for the first time. Attendances increased by 34%. Pre-tax losses increased to £5,282,000 (2005: £2,728,000). Salary costs up to £10 million (2005: £4.5 million) Hearts' second-place finish in the SPL and their win over Gretna in the final of the Scottish Cup last May also contributed to an increase in commercial income. In the transfer market, the club benefited from the sale of Rudi Skacel to Southampton for £1.2m, along with the elimination of £2m of debt by UAB Ukio Banko Investicine Grupe (UBIG), a company controlled by Romanov. Pre-tax losses increased to just over £5m, compared to £2.7m, in 2006, which is largely accounted for by an increase in salary costs to £10m, compared to £4.5m in 2005. A statement on the official club website maintains that the the loss is in line with the board of directors' expectations, with financial demands and club debts continuing to benefit from the financial support from UBIG. The Hearts board also believes that current levels of debt remain manageable and will be reduced through participation in European competition, although wage expenditure is unlikely to increase in future. |
