Bristol Rovers have announced a record pre-tax loss of £3.9 million for the 2022/23 season, an increase of £200,000 from the previous year.
Rovers has revealed record losses for the second consecutive year, reporting a pre-tax loss of £3.7 million for the 2021/22 season, albeit the increase was significantly more dramatic as the Gas’ relegation to League Two in 2021 saw losses nearly triple. In a statement, Rovers stated that promotion back to League One meant they proceeded into the 2022/23 season “with the aim to consolidate our position back within the league,” which they did after finishing 17th.
According to the club’s strategic report, “the board once again committed to a competitive playing budget with fees paid for three players” and that “combined with the contractual bonuses payable from the previous promotion meant that steps towards financial sustainability have yet to be taken.”
Jordan Rossiter from Fleetwood Town joined former loanees Luke McCormick and James Connolly, who were bought from AFC Wimbledon and Cardiff City for undisclosed sums, respectively.
The most recent set of accounts precede the investment of chairman Hussain AlSaeed, who became a co-owner of Rovers’ holding company, Dwane Sports, and hence a co-owner of the club, in August. However, conversations, according to AlSaeed, started in February.
The Gas also saw a 16 percent increase in turnover from £6.2 million to £7.2 million, with the club citing that the 2022/23 season saw a “41 percent increase versus the 2021/22 season for season ticket sales with a total of 5,366 season ticket holders” on the back of a dramatic promotion race that culminated in an immediate return to League One. The number of attendees was “supplemented by a further 90,119 additional supporters attending on a match by match basis.”
In their report, Rovers also stated “the season saw the redevelopment of the Seat Unique Suite, increasing the capacity of our main hospitality lounge and improving the specifications of the area” as well as outlining the approved proposal for the new 3,414-capacity South Stand. That has now been finished and has had a noticeable influence on the Memorial Stadium, but Rovers stated that they hoped that “will be the first big step towards improvement of the venue.”
Since then, AlSaeed has announced plans to reconstruct the East Stand and Thatcher’s End in the future years, rather than building a new stadium at the Fruit Market site, which is estimated to boost the stadium’s capacity to approximately 18,000.
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