Darlington FC has today released 2021/22 accounts to shareholders and owners.

As a fan owned club, we are committed to keeping our supporter-owners fully informed on the club’s financial position in a timely and consistent manner. The full accounts and report are available to download for DFCSG Owners from the document section of supporter’s YourClub accounts here: https://yourclub.darlingtonfc.co.uk/

We are currently in the process of finalising a date for the Darlington 1883 Ltd AGM at which the Board will be available for questions. In the meantime any questions supporters have on the accounts can be emailed to chris.stockdale@darlingtonfc.org.

Summary

• Core revenue lines all higher versus pre-Covid 2019/20 period
• Commercial revenue and profit at record level under fan ownership
• Overall revenue decreased 10% v 2019/20 due to lower football fortune income
• Boost The Budget investment from fan-owners of £136,000
• Operating loss, which excludes Boost The Budget investment, supported by Boost The Budget and cash reserves

The numbers

^{*Results versus 2019/20 due to Covid-19 distorting year-on-year comparisons}

Overall

Season 21/22 was our third under the management of Alun Armstrong and the first completed in full in that period. We finished the season in 13th position in National League North.

Following an end of the season review investment was increased in the playing squad and at the time of release of these results we currently occupy a place in the playoff spots.

The headline result for the year was an adjusted operating loss of £142,186. This financial performance was in-line with the budget set before the start of the year. It is important to note that as Boost The Budget (£136,000) is recorded as an investment it does not affect the P&L number and if Boost The Budget was included as income would materially reduce the loss for the year.

Over the course of the year the Company received funds totalling £136,000 from its majority shareholder DFCSG from Boost The Budget. This continued investment from our fan-owners provided consistent cashflow across the period and helped bolster the club’s financial position. 136,000 shares were issued to DFCSG post-year end.

Our trading performance between these results and the prior year are distorted by the exceptional COVID-19 period. Comparing our core revenue streams against the 2019/20 period prior to COVID-19 we have grown Matchday, Commercial, Retail and Womens & Academy Teams revenues on a comparable basis.

Overall, the operating loss was funded by the continued investment from our supporter-owners via Boost The Budget and our cash reserves on our balance sheet.

Additional progress on the sustainability of the business is required to underpin the club’s financial position to allow us to continue to support our ambitions on the pitch. The Board are actively pursuing the long-term goal of a new stadium development which in the Board’s view is key to a truly sustainable future.

Balance Sheet

During the period, as planned, we utilised our cash reserves to fund the operating loss of the business. We concluded the year with a positive net cash position (after external debt) of £107,609.

Update on the current financial year

In the current financial year, overall we have performed broadly in line with the base scenario forecast we outlined to supporters at the start of the financial year. Matchday income is marginally ahead of last season however costs are forecast to be higher than last season with football spend ahead of the original budget due to increased investment and performance bonuses. We are also experiencing cost inflation as seen in the wider economy.

Taking all the factors above into account and notwithstanding the sale of Mark Beck we continue to expect to post an operating and cash loss for this year which will be supported by our fan-owners Boost The Budget investment and our cash reserves.