A German championship would be a great sporting success for Borussia Dortmund. But from an economic perspective, the consequences for BVB as a company would be rather limited.
On the last match day of the 2022/2023 Bundesliga season next weekend, Borussia Dortmund can replace FC Bayern Munich as series champions and become German champions for the first time since the 2011/2012 season. A home win against Mainz 05, who are ninth in the table, would suffice.
BVB lost to RB Leipzig in the quarter-finals of the DFB Cup this season. In the Champions League, they lost to Chelsea in the round of 16. From a sporting point of view, the championship would be a great success – but what would it mean for the company Borussia Dortmund GmbH & KGaA?
An economically successful year so far
In any case, the championship would be a successful conclusion to a year that has been successful so far, also from an economic point of view. About two weeks ago, BVB published the balance sheet for the first nine months of the current financial year. In this period of the financial year, which will end for BVB on June 30, the company achieved a turnover of 322.4 million euros. In the previous year it was 277 million. The consolidated result improved from eleven to almost 25 million euros.
But the economic situation of BVB is unlikely to change initially as a result of a championship title. “The direct economic effect would be negligible, since the placement alone would not result in any change in the relevant TV money rankings, because BVB would definitely remain behind FC Bayern Munich here,” explains Philipp Sennewald, stock expert at the analysis company NuWays , across from tagesschau.de.
image enhancement for a strong squad
But that doesn’t mean that there won’t be any positive effects – even if they are more likely to be of an indirect nature. According to Sennewald, an important factor is the image gain: “The championship will most likely make BVB more attractive for possible new sponsors. In this case, the contracts with existing sponsors should also include bonus payments. In addition, the club will become more attractive for new players and players willing to change.” , states the expert. That in turn would increase the chance that BVB will have a competitive squad next season.
And BVB, who of course qualified for the Champions League (CL), can use that: “BVB would have been placed in the CL lottery pot with the championship,” explains Sennewald. “This increases the probability of progressing to the top of the group, which increases the chance of the highest possible bonus payments.”
economic factor Champions League
A glance at the bonus table also shows how important a successful Champions League season is for the clubs. This season, UEFA has already paid out around 15.6 million euros as a starting bonus for participation in the group phase. Despite bonuses per win or draw at this stage of the competition, money-making then begins with the knockout stage.
BVB received 9.6 million euros for reaching the round of 16 this year. Reaching the quarter-finals would have flushed another 10.6 million into the coffers, the semi-finals will be paid with another 12.5 million euros, the loser of this year’s final will receive 15.5 million euros as a consolation prize, the winner will receive 20 million euros. A successfully played Champions League would therefore make a significant contribution to sales thanks to the high bonuses.
Beware of sports club stocks
The stock reacted to today’s win with a course jump by around 14 percent and exceeded the five euro mark. In September of last year, the paper was listed for less than three euros. In 2023 alone, a price increase of around 38 percent has been recorded so far.
But when looking at the share price and its valuation, at least caution is required, explains Sennewald: “BVB’s price is more based on sporting events than on economic ones.” The high proportion of investors from the fan scene represents a certain risk, emphasizes the expert. The reason is that they are not particularly familiar with stock market trading and would buy or sell the stock depending on the result of a game day. “This can lead to illogical price movements.”
“The best example here is today, where the stock rose by around 14 percent at its peak, although the direct economic impact of the championship is almost zero,” explains Sennewald. Therefore, the stock analyst advises: “In general, you should invest a maximum of a small proportion of your portfolio in sports clubs such as BVB, Juventus Turin or Manchester United.”