Questions of football finance are starting to be as fascinating as the game itself. This is because the amounts of money involved have grown to extraordinary, mouth-watering levels. There is now so much money at the top of the English game that political controversy is frequent, such as with the takeover of Newcastle by the Saudi government, masquerading as their independent investment branch. Today’s political minefields often seem to have goalposts at both ends. So now, for the first time ever in English football, fans keen to protect its unique, competitive pyramid structure have lobbied successfully for  the appointment of an independent regulator to take charge of the governance of our “national” game, which means so much to so many of us. Once the regulator is up and running we can hope for real change to the current chaotic governance structure, which pits leagues against leagues and clubs against clubs. Right now there is simply too much to gain and too much to lose. Each club is desperately trying to protect its own interests while forgetting that without a healthy and fair structure for all clubs there is no competition. Football as a whole is losing out to the interests of individual clubs, whether it’s a handful of the most wealthy clubs in the Premier League trying to kill the English pyramid so they can earn even more money in a European Super League or a handful of club-owner directors on the National League Board breaking league rules on conflicts of interest by voting to distribute excessive funding to their own clubs. So the regulator is going to have its work cut out.

However before going into detail about the financial implications of an FA Cup run I need to remind myself (and you) of why this question is so unusual. It’s extremely rare for clubs like Maidstone, in the sixth tier of the pyramid, to get past even rounds one and two of the FA Cup let alone march into the fourth, where there are only 32 clubs left, or the fifth, where there are only 16, most of them from the Premier League and Championship. A few days ago Maidstone travelled to play Ipswich Town, previous UEFA and FA Cup winners no less.  We were the lowest ranked club left in the competition by a long way and the only non-league club left. Thanks to a magnificent performance by our players, showing grit and determination of the highest order and thanks also to a fair-sized dose of good fortune, we won the match. Ipswich had the world-class players but we had the world-class moments. The win set a record for our club in the FA Cup and also attracted the attention of media around the world. We are not really equipped for all this attention but are enjoying our rare and brief moment in the news.

It is a miracle that we have come this far, a miracle engineered by our young, rookie manager George Elokobi, formerly a Premier League player with Wolves. He is having the début managerial season to end all seasons. The FA Cup success is down to the remarkable leadership qualities of George and the efforts of his squad, who have defied the odds through hard-work, a refusal to give up, and a teamwork ethic of the highest order. It is of course probable – but not certain – that we will be soundly defeated in the fifth Round by (as I write this) Sheffield Wednesday or Coventry City, teams four divisions above us. It is quite a mis-match. But then again George Elokobi has so far shown a certain relish for mis-matches.

Apart from the joy this cup run has brought to everybody who supports the club it also has enormous financial implications. Let’s look at those.

Firstly let’s put it into context. Since 2010 our club has executed a business model of breaking even or better every season, until the last one… This has been possible due to strict budgeting and use of an artificial pitch. Our annual turnover in recent years has been between £1.5 and £2 million. Any profit made has been used to expand and improve the stadium where necessary, as we fulfil tougher stadium grading requirements every step up the English football pyramid. As far as our balance sheet is concerned it is indeed balanced. We are virtually debt free except for interest-free shareholder loans of an amount (£2.5 million) roughly the same as the value of the club assets, principally the stadium and surrounding land.

Last financial year was a difficult one. The men’s first team struggled in the National League (Step five of the pyramid). In non-football parlance the product being sold was poor and the customers drifted away. Our receipts thus dropped sharply and were further hit by the drinking laws applying in the National League and levels above, through which no alcohol may be consumed within sight of the pitch, a law passed in the aftermath of the age of rioting football hooligans. Meanwhile our costs rose too due to higher player and staff wages and increased travel costs. As a result we suffered our first loss in 11 years. This loss, provisionally around £200K, together with a need to replace our artificial pitch at season end 2024, means that we have had to face up to a combined funding requirement this season of some £450k. Cue the FA Cup run and all that goes with it.

There are various pockets of cup run revenue :

• FA fund prize money for seven successful matches to date equates to £295K, net of playing squad and staff bonusses.
• Estimates of gate receipts net of VAT including shared gates at away fixtures, minus pooled and opposition shares will amount to some £215K.
• Television money depends on the precise arrangement. We were shown live in the 1st round v Barrow as part of a multiplex, then against Stevenage in the third round shown only overseas. In the fourth round at Ipswich we were live on BBC1. We don’t know yet if BBC will show our fifth round match so we don’t  include any revenues. Total fees to date £145K.
• Estimate of bar profits and merchandising extras during the cup run is difficult, perhaps £25K.

So the total estimated revenue to our club from the cup run so far is £680K. In context this is a whopping 40% increase over our average annual turnover. Although we would never include cup revenues in a budgeting exercise they can be a game-changer. In particular these one-off revenues will wipe out last season’s losses and pay for next season’s new pitch. We will be able to strengthen our playing squad but prudently while also reconsidering capital projects which had been put on hold. We shall continue to concentrate on ensuring the club is sustainable and healthy so that generations of fans to come can enjoy days like the Ipswich match, which will stay long in the memory of the supporters. For a small pro club like Maidstone this is an extraordinary windfall, which strengthens our balance sheet and reinforces our business model; just as importantly for our fans there is an exceptional, unforgettable, record-breaking cup run to savour. Long live the FA Cup!