French first-division clubs lost $678 million last season.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 05/05/2022 (1615 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

PARIS (AP) — French first-division soccer clubs lost 645 million euros ($678 million) during the coronvirus-hit 2020-21 season, the league’s financial watchdog said Thursday.

The DNCG said 17 of the 20 teams in Ligue 1 lost money last season.

Match revenues took a huge hit as games were held without fans from October onward and with limited capacity set at 5,000 before that. Only Saint-Etienne, Rennes and Dijon — which was relegated — stayed in the green.

The total amount lost was 140 percent higher than the total of 269 million euros ($283 million) lost during the 2019-20 campaign, which was called off with 10 matches left as the pandemic hit.

Even though that season ended early, clubs still grossed 170 million euros ($179 million) from ticket sales, a total that dropped massively last season to barely 8 million euros ($8.4 million).

For example, Paris Saint-Germain’s ticket receipts fell from 38 million euros ($40 million) to 961,000 euros ($1 million).

Lyon fared marginally better, dropping from 35.5 million euros ($37.3 million) to 2 million euros ($2.1 million).

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

The Warm-Up

Winnipeg Jets Game Days

On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop.

Sign up for The Warm-Up

Sign Up

I consent to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies.

I consent to CASL agreement.

___

More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports