Merchandise sales set to boost financials after epic grand final
9 October 2023
By Dr Abdel K Halabi
The 2023 AFL season is over, wrapping up with a grand final that many say is among the greatest, and by now most clubs have now held their last formal events for the year.
October is typically a calmer month for clubs as game-day activities and functions have largely ceased. For all AFL clubs, October 31 is the end of the financial reporting period and clubs are now using this time to close their books, prepare their accounting reports and finalise dates for their annual general meetings.
It is, however, not a quiet time for the winning grand final club. The off-field activities and particularly the sales of grand final merchandise during October significantly bolster the bottom line of the premiership team.
Recent history tells us there will be more good times for this year’s premiers Collingwood - this time reflected in the club’s balance sheet.
The Magpies are Australia’s biggest AFL club by membership with 106,470 members, one of three clubs to have more than 100,000 members in 2023, a year that also saw 15 clubs break their own membership records. Football crowds are well and truly back.
When the Western Bulldogs won their first AFL premiership in 62 years in 2016, they announced a record profit of $1,773,324, up significantly from $388,262 the year before.
The increase was largely driven by close to $2 million in merchandise sales both online and in retail shops to their grand final victory over Sydney. The then-CEO said winning the 2016 Premiership significantly contributed to the boosted profits.
That year, Richmond made a loss of $80,257, however after winning the grand final in 2017 – their first for 37 years – their profit was $3,063,298. The 2017 annual report noted the significant increase in profits was due to “increased crowds and sponsorship and sales of merchandise and memorabilia”.
When the West Coast Eagles won the grand final in 2018 in a nail-biter over Collingwood, their merchandise revenue had increased about 70 per cent from $2,331,242 the previous year to $3,939,331.
Melbourne Football Club, which won the AFL premiership in 2021 (their previous was in 1964), increased their bottom line by a staggering $6,328,727, from a loss of $3,690,499 in 2020 to a profit of $2,638,228 in 2021.
Merchandise sales in the month after the grand final amounted to $2.7 million, with $1.2 million sold in the days after the grand final.
Last year, Geelong made $500,000 from the sale of merchandise the day after the AFL grand final. The Geelong CEO predicted the club would sell up to $5 million worth of merchandise in the weeks after the premiership, and the Cats sold the highest amount of merchandise of all clubs for the year, although Port Adelaide, Richmond, the Western Bulldogs and Collingwood did not disclose their merchandise sales in 2022.
Collingwood’s 4-point win this year over Brisbane in one of the great grand finals will lead to a financial boom to Collingwood’s bottom line. By winning, Collingwood will also receive $1.25 million from the AFL. Last year the club recorded a profit of $7,134,753, yet this was after receiving a government grant of over $9 million for the club’s redevelopment. Without the grant, it would have made a loss as it had done in 2021 and 2020.
The purchases of Collingwood grand final souvenirs and memorabilia by members and the many thousands of supporters should see a very healthy profit for the club in 2023 and drive the turnaround of the club’s financial results after three disappointing years.
Dr Abdel K Halabi is an Associate Professor in Accounting. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Accountants of Australia and New Zealand (CAANZ) and a Certified Practising Accountant with CPA Australia. He is co-editor of Sporting Traditions the journal of the Australian Society for Sports History.
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