THE 2018/19 season in Scotland’s top flight feels as if it has reinvigorated our national game. On the pitch, there’s been plenty to get excited about for most fans; whether it be Hearts’ superb start to the season, Rangers’ resurgence under Steven Gerrard, Kilmarnock’s surprise bid for the title or Celtic not looking quite as all-conquering as they have in previous seasons, there have been plenty of reasons to be cheerful about the increased level of competition in the Premiership.

Adding managers of a higher calibre has undoubtedly helped raise standards in the league and there are a number of excellent coaches now plying their trade in Scotland; we have high-profile names like Brendan Rodgers and Steven Gerrard but elsewhere in the division we have managers such as Steve Clarke, Derek McInnes, Craig Levein and Neil Lennon who are all excellent coaches at this level. The feelgood factor is back in Scottish football and this season has proven to be full of twists, turns and sub-plots since the get go.

Earlier this week UEFA published their annual report into the health of European football and the governing body are suggesting that Scottish football is in an increasingly positive state off the pitch too. The report uses figures from the last financial year, the 2017/18 season, and compares them to the year before and there is plenty to provide Scottish football fans with optimism about the state of our game going forward.

The fans

Supporters have always been one of the biggest selling points of Scottish football, with the level of passion they bring being one of our national sport’s greatest assets. Despite being a country with a population of a little over five million, the Premiership has the seventh-highest average attendance of any top division in Europe, with more fans turning up each week than in Russia, Turkey or Portugal on average.

This figure is on the increase, according to UEFA, with attendances rising somewhere between five and 15 percent last season compared to the 2016/17 campaign. We have one of the best-supported leagues in all of Europe - and two of the best-supported clubs - and it’s something that we, as a nation, should be proud of. In Scotland, the fans really care and turn up week in, week out to prove it.

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And it’s these fans that are keeping our clubs afloat. Gate receipts account for around 40% of each Premiership club’s total annual revenue on average, the highest percentage of any country in Europe’s top 20 leagues. Scottish clubs rely on supporters more than any other major European country; the next-highest percentage of revenue that comes from gate receipts can be found in the Netherlands, where matchday income represents 28% of a club’s revenue.

Rangers’ promotion to the Premiership has, unsurprisingly, been hugely beneficial to clubs in this regard. There has been a whopping 76% rise in average gate receipts since the club won the Championship and every top flight side has benefitted as a result. The Premiership also has the seventh-highest average ticket price in Europe, with the mean ticket price for a top flight game around £20.

Television revenue

Money gained from broadcasting deals totals around £19.5 million for Premiership clubs, but it should be pointed out that this sum is not distributed evenly among the Premiership’s twelve clubs. On average, TV revenue accounts for around 11% of any team’s income - only Russian sides (5%) receive a lower percentage of club revenue among Europe’s top 15 leagues.

This tells us that clubs aren’t too reliant on money generated from television revenue - probably a good thing, given Scottish football’s history of over-reliance on broadcasting deals - but also implies that we could be getting a little more in this regard. UEFA note that “Scottish clubs should expect to see their revenues rise” in this area.

Celtic and Rangers still bring in around three times as much revenue from domestic broadcasting compared to the other 10 clubs in the top flight, so inequality still exists in this regard, but it’s worth pointing out that this figure has decreased over the last decade. In 2008, the Old Firm brought in around five times as much in from domestic broadcasting deals compared to the rest of the league.

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Celtic’s qualification for the Champions League group stages last season accounted for around 30% of the club’s total revenue. Reaching this stage of Europe’s top club competition brings massive rewards in terms of television revenue for the champions: the television revenue Celtic gained from making it through the qualifiers was around six times higher than the amount the club receive from the Premiership’s domestic broadcasting deal, according to UEFA’s report.

Wages

Premiership wages take up around 59% of each Premiership club’s outgoings on average but this is actually one of the lowest rates in European football’s major leagues. Out of the top 20, only Poland (57%) have a lower percentage of revenue spent on wages. Of course, the vast majority of player wages paid in the Premiership are funded by Celtic and Rangers - combined, the two teams pay around £72 million pounds a season - but there is still a noticeable gap between sides pushing for European qualification and the rest of the division.

The likes of Aberdeen or the Edinburgh clubs shell out around £7 million a season according to UEFA, while clubs at the other end of the table like Hamilton have an annual wage bill of around £2.6 million. This insight from UEFA highlights an issue that is often overlooked in Scottish football. Yes, there is huge inequality between the Old Firm and the rest of the league, but there is still inequality - albeit, to a lesser extent -  between clubs challenging for Europe and those simply fighting to avoid relegation.

Club finances

Average total revenue for clubs has risen by over 15% for Scottish sides, compared to 2017, and most clubs are in a healthy state off the pitch, according to UEFA. As a whole, top flight revenues still aren’t as high as they were 10 years ago, but have been rising year on year.

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The Premiership earns income through four key areas; domestic television revenue (worth 11%), UEFA prize money (18%), gate receipts (40%) and sponsorship (27%). Scottish clubs are remarkably self-sufficient in the transfer market, with gross transfer income only representing 5% of a club’s revenue on average.

The Premiership is also one of only five leagues in Europe’s top 20 where the majority of clubs own their stadia outright; of the 12 top flight teams, nine have full ownership of their grounds, with the other three partially-owned by their club.

Perhaps most impressive is the ratio of club assets - whether it be a stadium, training ground or even players - to liabilities in Scotland, with each club on average having around twice the amount of assets to liabilities - the highest ratio in any of Europe’s top 20 leagues.

Having said that, it’s not all rosy everywhere you look in Scotland’s top flight. Half of the Premiership sides make an annual profit, with three unnamed clubs boasting a profit margin greater than 20%. The flip side, of course, is that there are six teams currently operating at a loss, with one (also unnamed) club currently operating at a 20% loss each season.