Swansea City's owners pocket £2m windfall

Swansea City's halo slips as owners decide to pocket £2m windfall.

• Only Supporters' Trust opts to reinvest in rebuilt club.
• Creditors under previous regime got 5p in the pound.The Liberty Stadium was built with £27m of public money even though the City and County of Swansea was owed £35,000 by a previous Swans regime.

Swansea City have announced a £16m profit for the six months to 30 November 2012 and with it, for the first time, a dividend for the club's shareholders – £1m for this and last season in the Premier League.

The chairman, Huw Jenkins, says the £2m dividend justly rewards the owners, mostly directors too, who have worked unpaid to steer a remarkable rebuilding, but it risks taking a little shine off Swansea's halo. In a game acclimatising to a new culture, in which club owners are no longer "custodians" but motivated by making money for themselves, Swansea have stood out as an exception, until now.

Since the current group of nine owners, notably including the Swansea City Supporters' Trust, put in £50,000 each in 2002 to buy the club and save it from its grimmest crisis, none has taken a penny out. The partnership with the supporters' trust, which raised £200,000 over the years to buy 20% of the club and has an elected director, Huw Cooze, on the board, is hailed as a model, recently described as "probably ideal" by the Premier League chief executive, Richard Scudamore.

Now the trust stands out too, in its attitude towards the £2m windfall. The other owners will be paid the dividend in proportion to their shareholding and are free to keep it. Martin Morgan, who owns 22.5% of the club according to its ownership statement, will receive £450,000. Brian Katzen, another original shareholder, owns 20%, having paid in £200,000, so will be paid £400,000.

Jenkins, who was paid a £200,000 salary last year and is widely admired for the shrewd way he has steered the club's recovery, owns 12.5%, so his share of the £2m dividend will be £250,000.

The trust surveyed its members in anticipation of the payout – 20% of the £2m dividend, £400,000 – and 78% responded that the trust should keep it, waiting for more shares to buy so it can increase its stake. As no other owners are selling, the trust will spend a little of it sponsoring south Wales junior football leagues and put the rest in the bank for investment should the club need it.

Jenkins argues the dividend is correct, as it reflects the club's aim to make a profit, not huge losses like so many others. Dividends, he said, are a more "tax-efficient" way of remunerating directors because national insurance is not paid on them. And he argues payments to directors could be disguised in the general wage bill, while a dividend must be declared: "We have been open," he told the Guardian. "Our shareholders are mostly working directors and you can't keep expecting them to be unpaid, with the millions going out to players and managers." Yet some sense of Swansea as devotees to a more purist way for football is being shaken. Then there is the company voluntary arrangement (CVA), on which the club's great progress since 2002 has been built – debts to a barrage of creditors, amassed by the previous regime, were settled for 5p in the pound. The City and County of Swansea was owed £35,000. Three other local authorities had to write off money and Dillwyn Llewelyn community school was owed £1,175. Swansea NHS trust was owed £1,960, the South Wales police authority, £10,448.76 and the Welsh Ambulance Service, £1,063.97. St John Ambulance was there too, its training company owed £2,411.10. The total owed to unsecured creditors was £271,208, less than a third of the dividend the owners are now declaring for themselves.

Jenkins said he believes the creditors were never fully recompensed, although St John Ambulance says its debt was recouped via advertising at the ground. The local council clearly did not hold a grudge because shortly afterwards it built the Liberty Stadium with £27m public money for the Swans and is delighted with the wider economic benefits brought to a recession-hit region. Still, it would have been classy to recompense all those old creditors from the Premier League bounty before the owners helped themselves.

After football clubs first formed into companies in the 1880s the Football Association restricted dividends, to prevent owners taking money out for themselves. The character of the clubs as member associations was to be preserved, and owners and directors were to be custodians, not in it for profit. In the Premier League era that rule was serially bypassed when the clubs floated on the Stock Exchange, and the modern FA finally gave up on it.

Swansea City had seemed to embody the former ethos, a beaming exception, and now, with this dividend, that has changed. Except for the supporters' trust, which holds its shares as a mutual body, still for no pay, just for the committed sense of belonging.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013 ... s-windfall

And why would you bring up OLD news (April 9th) like this, stop obsessing over the Jacks!

Yet another topic about the jacks

Dont care

So what can you not reward someone for doing well,we would be fecked without them.

There is alot of people on here slating us off, what do you expect from a Cardiff forum I know, but is there anyone supporter who would not swop places with recent fotunes with Swansea. You would have loved to now be financially sound, two years done in the premiership finishing mid table and going into Europe.So show some respect!.

I have been wanting you lot to come up and hope that two Welsh clubs can tear up the prem together. Good luck for the close season and enjoy the ride.

So what can you not reward someone for doing well,we would be fecked without them.

There is alot of people on here slating us off, what do you expect from a Cardiff forum I know, but is there anyone supporter who would not swop places with recent fotunes with Swansea. You would have loved to now be financially sound, two years done in the premiership finishing mid table and going into Europe.So show some respect!.

I have been wanting you lot to come up and hope that two Welsh clubs can tear up the prem together. Good luck for the close season and enjoy the ride.

Who the f**k are you demanding respect!

Ill show swansea the same respect they showed their creditors.......

Been in prem 2 seasons and you lot act as if your thefucking founding fathers.....f**k off you arrogant cunts

Last edited by CraigCCFC on Mon May 20, 2013 4:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.

And why would you bring up OLD news (April 9th) like this, stop obsessing over the Jacks!

8th actually. Thought I'd read that story before, should have checked the date.

So what can you not reward someone for doing well,we would be fecked without them.

There is alot of people on here slating us off, what do you expect from a Cardiff forum I know, but is there anyone supporter who would not swop places with recent fotunes with Swansea. You would have loved to now be financially sound, two years done in the premiership finishing mid table and going into Europe.So show some respect!.

I have been wanting you lot to come up and hope that two Welsh clubs can tear up the prem together. Good luck for the close season and enjoy the ride.

No you have had a good run but have maximised your potential, downhill for you now, we have far greater potential being a much larger and Capital City, and will the financial backing from a Billionaire.....

Hope you've enjoyed you brief spell higher placed than us, there haven't been many seasons that has happened but normal service will resume within the next season or two.

So what can you not reward someone for doing well,we would be fecked without them.

There is alot of people on here slating us off, what do you expect from a Cardiff forum I know, but is there anyone supporter who would not swop places with recent fotunes with Swansea. You would have loved to now be financially sound, two years done in the premiership finishing mid table and going into Europe.So show some respect!.

I have been wanting you lot to come up and hope that two Welsh clubs can tear up the prem together. Good luck for the close season and enjoy the ride.

Who the f**k are you demanding respect!

Ill show swansea the same respect they showed their creditors.......

Been in prem 2 seasons and you lot act as if your thefucking founding fathers.....f**k off you arrogant cunts

Touched a nerve

Listen I am sorry guys, I am a passionate Jack but I live and work in Cardiff and have some great Cardiff supporters as mates but some of the comments on here about us are really pathetic and embarrasing for the posters. I defend my club of course but respect yours for its recent fantastic achivements.

So what can you not reward someone for doing well,we would be fecked without them.

There is alot of people on here slating us off, what do you expect from a Cardiff forum I know, but is there anyone supporter who would not swop places with recent fotunes with Swansea. You would have loved to now be financially sound, two years done in the premiership finishing mid table and going into Europe.So show some respect!.

I have been wanting you lot to come up and hope that two Welsh clubs can tear up the prem together. Good luck for the close season and enjoy the ride.

Who the f**k are you demanding respect!

Ill show swansea the same respect they showed their creditors.......

Been in prem 2 seasons and you lot act as if your thefucking founding fathers.....f**k off you arrogant cunts

So what can you not reward someone for doing well,we would be fecked without them.

There is alot of people on here slating us off, what do you expect from a Cardiff forum I know, but is there anyone supporter who would not swop places with recent fotunes with Swansea. You would have loved to now be financially sound, two years done in the premiership finishing mid table and going into Europe.So show some respect!.

I have been wanting you lot to come up and hope that two Welsh clubs can tear up the prem together. Good luck for the close season and enjoy the ride.

No you have had a good run but have maximised your potential, downhill for you now, we have far greater potential being a much larger and Capital City, and will the financial backing from a Billionaire.....

Hope you've enjoyed you brief spell higher placed than us, there haven't been many seasons that has happened but normal service will resume within the next season or two.

look at QPR

And why would you bring up OLD news (April 9th) like this, stop obsessing over the Jacks!

Huw "I won't take a penny out of this club" Jenkins...

Huw "I won't take a penny out of this club" Jenkins...

is he taking 7% on top like tan

Huw "I won't take a penny out of this club" Jenkins...

is he taking 7% on top like tan

Tan has taken 0 out the club.

And why would you bring up OLD news (April 9th) like this, stop obsessing over the Jacks!

Almost as obsessed as your username..

Huw "I won't take a penny out of this club" Jenkins...

is he taking 7% on top like tan

Tan has taken 0 out the club.

He will do when it comes to getting his money back.

Huw "I won't take a penny out of this club" Jenkins...

is he taking 7% on top like tan

Tan has taken 0 out the club.

yet

So what can you not reward someone for doing well,we would be fecked without them.

No you have had a good run but have maximised your potential, downhill for you now, we have far greater potential being a much larger and Capital City, and will the financial backing from a Billionaire.....

Hope you've enjoyed you brief spell higher placed than us, there haven't been many seasons that has happened but normal service will resume within the next season or two.

look at QPR

Why??? Look at Man City and Chelsea, and even Fluham come to that

Huw "I won't take a penny out of this club" Jenkins...

Surely as a Billionaire business man with a string of business's he wouldn't need the money????

Huw "I won't take a penny out of this club" Jenkins...

is he taking 7% on top like tan

Tan has taken 0 out the club.

He will do when it comes to getting his money back.

Or he may not. If he turns it to equity the 7% is irrelevant

Huw "I won't take a penny out of this club" Jenkins...

is he taking 7% on top like tan

Tan has taken 0 out the club.

He will do when it comes to getting his money back.

Or he may not. If he turns it to equity the 7% is irrelevant

'IF' is the right word

And why would you bring up OLD news (April 9th) like this, stop obsessing over the Jacks!

Almost as obsessed as your username..

Obviously you have no idea what my username is relating to, although you may THINK you do

And why would you bring up OLD news (April 9th) like this, stop obsessing over the Jacks!

Almost as obsessed as your username..

Obviously you have no idea what my username is relating to, although you may THINK you do

And why would you bring up OLD news (April 9th) like this, stop obsessing over the Jacks!

Almost as obsessed as your username..

Obviously you have no idea what my username is relating to, although you may THINK you do

I was talking to "cantstandcardiff" mate.

Huw "I won't take a penny out of this club" Jenkins...

is he taking 7% on top like tan

Tan has taken 0 out the club.

Because there's nothing in the club to take out.

He's given the club nothing, any investment is a loan with 7% interest.

Huw "I won't take a penny out of this club" Jenkins...

is he taking 7% on top like tan

Tan has taken 0 out the club.

Because there's nothing in the club to take out.

He's given the club nothing, any investment is a loan with 7% interest.

Hes given the club money. In the form of loans, which if he sticks to his word and theres no evidence to suggest he wont as he's kept his word on everything else to date then we have a debt free club without screwing over our creditors

Huw "I won't take a penny out of this club" Jenkins...

is he taking 7% on top like tan

Tan has taken 0 out the club.

Because there's nothing in the club to take out.

He's given the club nothing, any investment is a loan with 7% interest.

Hes given the club money. In the form of loans, which if he sticks to his word and theres no evidence to suggest he wont as he's kept his word on everything else to date then we have a debt free club without screwing over our creditors

He hasn't given the club any money, he's lent it to them.

He hasn't stuck to his word so far, he went back on his initial u turn on the rebrand and he put aside a certain amount of money to pay off the Langstone debt, which he wasn't happy to pay in the end.

Lets just see if he decides to write off a large amount of his money. Can you honestly say you trust Tan? We made an agreement made with our creditors, we didn't screw them over, they agreed to it. I trust our owners.

"The big dragon will protect the bluebird" "Do I look stupid?"

Huw "I won't take a penny out of this club" Jenkins...

is he taking 7% on top like tan

Tan has taken 0 out the club.

Because there's nothing in the club to take out.

He's given the club nothing, any investment is a loan with 7% interest.

Hes given the club money. In the form of loans, which if he sticks to his word and theres no evidence to suggest he wont as he's kept his word on everything else to date then we have a debt free club without screwing over our creditors

He hasn't given the club any money, he's lent it to them.

He hasn't stuck to his word so far, he went back on his initial u turn on the rebrand and he put aside a certain amount of money to pay off the Langstone debt, which he wasn't happy to pay in the end.
.

Lets just see if he decides to write off a large amount of his money. Can you honestly say you trust Tan? We made an agreement made with our creditors, we didn't screw them over, they agreed to it. I trust our owners.

"The big dragon will protect the bluebird" "Do I look stupid?"

The intial u turn wasnt a lie. The messages of support swayed him to stick with the original plan as the majority were behind it. Thats not a lie.

He put aside 10m for langston who refused that offer, they are talking now.


Agreement with creditors.....really.....accept 5p in the pound or you will end up with nothing. That is screwing them over im afraid.

Id dress like that for his bank balance. Hes not stupid when you compare his and your bank statements