Arsenal announce £35.2m profits and slash club debt
• Club cut net from £332.8m to £203.6m
• Group's property business make £9.3m profit
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guardian.co.uk, Friday 26 February 2010 10.05 GMT
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The Emirates Stadium
Arsenal's Emirates Stadium has helped the club improve its revenue. Photograph: Paul Gilham/Getty Images
Arsenal have announced that they have slashed their debts by over £100m after making pre-tax profits of £35.2m for the six months ending 30 November, 2009.
The financial half-year results reveal Arsenal Holdings plc's total net debt has fallen from £332.8m to £203.6m – a reduction of £129.2m.
The club also announced significant progress at Highbury Square where the sale of 261 apartments raised £96.6m – an increase of £38.2m on 2008 – with all the proceeds used to pay off the project's debt. The group's property business recorded a pre-tax profit of £9.3m.
The figures are believed to include the sale of Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Touré to Manchester City for a combined fee nearing £29m, although the manager, Arsène Wenger, spent £10m to sign the defender Thomas Vermaelen from Ajax.
In the results, the north London club also reveal they have completed the first stage of investment in the Emirates Stadium and have reiterated their policy of re-signing first-team players on long-term contracts.
Peter Hill-Wood, the non-excecutive chairman, said: "I am pleased to report that the Group has delivered another profitable set of results for the first six months of the financial year.
"There has been remarkable progress at Highbury Square over the last 12 months and it is clear that the next couple of years will see our property activities delivering surplus cash. This is very good news, although I would not want to speculate on the exact quantum or timing of this.
"How we will use this surplus remains undecided but, in addition to investing in the team, I think we will examine investment in club projects and infrastructure, both in and around Emirates Stadium, which will provide a long-lasting benefit to the club and our tremendous, loyal supporters.
"Looking ahead, our strong financial base allows us time to take a measured and diligent approach to determining the club's direction beyond our move to the Emirates Stadium and into the next phase of growth."
