Burnley post £9m loss as Everton compensation props up the accounts

Burnley reported a loss of £9 million for the 2025-26 accounting year, far smaller than the losses of £24 million to £29 million they posted in each of the three seasons before. The club also recorded all-time high revenue of £144.5 million, according to BBC Sport.

The reason for the smaller loss is a payment from Everton. Burnley received £38.8 million in compensation after a Premier League ruling found that Everton had broken the league's profit and sustainability rules. Those rules limit how much money clubs can lose over a set period. The ruling said the breach had hurt Burnley's chances of avoiding relegation in 2021-22, the season they went down from the top flight.

That case has been running for some time. Everton were first given a 10-point deduction in November 2023 for breaching the rules, which was cut to six points. In June, a Premier League compensation decision ordered Everton to pay Burnley £35 million, with further interest still to be added. Everton have challenged the ruling.

Without the £38.8 million, Burnley's loss would have been £47.8 million, which would have been a record for the club. The club's board has not put that money at risk in its accounts. An appeal against the payment is expected to be heard in January. The possible outcome runs from nothing to the full amount being paid back. The board says the result cannot be reasonably measured, so it has not set aside a "provision", meaning money held back to cover a likely cost.

The club's debts are the other side of the picture. Burnley's borrowings stand at £142.3 million, which the BBC describes as the 10th-highest external debt in English football. External debt is money owed to outside lenders.

Much of that goes back to the club's sale. ALK Capital bought Burnley using a £65 million loan secured against club assets, including the Turf Moor stadium, and £37 million taken from the club's own bank balance. That loan was refinanced and extended to £105 million in the 2024-25 accounts, with interest rates as high as 12%. Separately, £37 million of factored debt carried interest of 12.75%. Factoring is a way of borrowing against unpaid invoices.

Velocity Capital, the holding company used to buy the club, owed Burnley £80.1 million. Of that, £77.7 million has now been paid to the club.

For Burnley supporters, the central question is what happens in January. A win for Everton would take away money the club has already counted. A loss for Everton would leave the club with a record loss on paper, and a much smaller one if the payment stands.