LONDON (CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — Well, its official – the owners of Wembley Stadium took a bath in the first nine months of operations. According to the BBC, the owner of the stadium Wembley National Stadium Limited (WNSL) has reported an operating loss of $41.7 million dollars for the 9 months that they were in operation for FY 2007.
Still, the owners are sanguine about being in the black for 2008.
"It was never envisaged that the stadium would record a profit in the first few years of operation and the cost-base in the first few months of operating reflects the nature of a start-up business," Wembley Stadium's managing director Alex Horne told the BBC.
WNSL has stated that the stadium is clearing enough to pay all their interest and loan payments on time, but it was not clear if these estimates were based on restructured debt, as some reports have suggested that such a restructuring may have been undertaken.
The Stadium has pulled in about $128 million, primarily from season ticket holders, ticket sales, sponsorship and catering and spent about 67.3 in costs associated with this revenue. Additionally, WNSL spent $41.3 million on staff, security and maintenance and another $19.8 on the final stages of construction. – CelebrityAccess Staff Writers
