Norwich City has reported a pre-tax loss of £14.4 million for the financial year ending in June, a significant improvement from the £27 million loss recorded the previous year.
While the club generated a profit of £13.4 million from player sales, overall turnover dropped to £73.1 million due to being in the second and final year of parachute payments following their 2022 relegation from the Premier League.
Executive Director Zoe Webber noted that the club is “moving positively” through a period of “significant transition and change” that she described as “unprecedented” during her time at Carrow Road.
American businessman Mark Attanasio became a joint majority shareholder last year, holding a 40.4% stake alongside Delia Smith and her husband, Michael Wynn Jones.
However, Smith and Wynn Jones will step down from the board in March 2025, reducing their stake to 10%. Attanasio’s Norfolk FB Holdings will increase its stake to around 85%, pending final shareholder approval.
Norfolk FB Holdings has provided essential financial support, with loans totaling £58.6 million by June 30, and an additional £8 million in cashflow funding since then.
These loans will be converted into new classes of preference shares, boosting their ownership stake.
Attanasio, who has owned Major League Baseball’s Milwaukee Brewers since 2004, joined Norwich City’s board just over two years ago.
In 2022, the club reported a pre-tax loss of £23.6 million, despite a record turnover of £133.9 million. Turnover for the year ending June 2023 fell to £75.6 million.
Webber said the club was fortunate that Attanasio and Norfolk FB partner Richard Ressler shared the same values as the current co-owners.
She added: “They are passionate about achieving sporting success but with a strong focus on the people and the community that make up the football club.”
With the conclusion of parachute payments last season, Norwich City has set its sights on becoming a financially stable and established Premier League club, focusing on smart player acquisitions and sales, as well as continued growth in off-field revenues.
On the field, Norwich reached the Championship play-offs last season under manager David Wagner, but were defeated by Leeds United, led by former Canaries head coach Daniel Farke.
Johannes Hoff Thorup replaced Wagner in late May, and the team is currently seventh in the table, having earned 15 points from nine games.
Their most recent match before the international break was one of their best performances, with a 4-0 victory over Hull City, where Borja Sainz netted his eighth goal of the season.
In the annual report, sporting director Ben Knapper said: “Johannes is still in the early stages of his senior coaching career, but he has a clear vision and philosophy that we believe can help progress our football club, both in the short and long term.”
He continued: “Over the course of the summer transfer window, we’ve been able to significantly lower the age profile of our group, attracting some really talented young players to the club who all have big potential and upside.
“Of course, with significant change to our playing squad and style of play, things will take time, but overall, we’re really happy with the path that we’re on.”