Former Reading FC Owners Report Record Debt

The figures were reported earlier this morning by GetReading. Reading FC Holdings owned 49% of the club during the Zingarevich era before taking on the remaining 51% once the Russian's consortium reneged on of their commitment to complete their takeover last September.

RFC Holdings is the parent company to Madejski Stadium Hotel Ltd., with directors consisting of John Madejski, his two daughters Helen & Camilla Morris, Ian Smith, and Reading FC director Ian Wood-Smith.

It remains unclear what route this debt has taken in recent months, as the directors report that revealed the figure covers the financial year that ends June 2014- before the Thai takeover the club in August that relinquished RFC Holdings' undesired control of the club.

The report breaks down the club's finances, as follows:

- RFC Holdings had debts of £18.85 million in 2012-13, that reached £65,450,800 in the last year as it had to reacquire the shares owned by Zingarevich's TSI when their backed out of the club.

- RFC Holdings' losses in the same period grew from over £800,000 to £29.3 million.

- The club owed TSI in excess of £19 million of loans, £1 million of which was paid back last season.

- Staff costs- staggeringly- were as low as £13.6 million, down from £46 million in the 2013/13 Premiership season, and £29 million on the promotion season of 2011/12.

The report always reveals that since June 30th £1.35 million was spent on purchasing players, with £5.5 million recouped on sales- that of Alex McCarthy and Sean Morrison.

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Plenty of questions remain. How can the total wages of last season amount to £13 million- below even our 2006 figures (£22 million)?

One possible answer could be that those figures only include the wages paid once the holding company was the majority shareholder. Anton handed back his shares in January, so that £13m would represent only around five months wages making the yearly figure a more realistic £30m or so (in line with the £26m we spent during the 2011/12 season).

The rest of the debt also presumably includes the offshore loans to Vibrac but questions still remain as to how, if at all, have the Thai consortium changed things?

As usual the Reading Supporters' Trust (STAR) will be giving the finances a review over the coming weeks, as they have done in previous years - a report which always helps clear things up, so we'll keep a keen eye out for that one.

Meanwhile as ever, The Tilehurst End will be providing plenty of analysis on the club's finances in the coming days and weeks.