In addition to the transfer window, the capital club continues to develop economically. And for the first time in a while, the club's revenue director has spoken out on all the hot topics.
If it is still struggling to make its mark on the European scene, Paris Saint-Germain imposes itself in the marketing and finance sector. Recently, the Deloitte firm published the financial results for the 2021/2022 season. In this ranking, the capital club is in fifth position with €654.2 million in revenue, behind Manchester United (€688.6 million), Liverpool (€701.7 million), Real Madrid (713.8 million). M€) and Manchester City (731 M€). An economic success which even makes a victory in the Champions League secondary if we are to believe the club's revenue director, Marc Armstrong.
“It is not necessary to win the Champions League”
“You don't have to win the Champions League to be a successful football club. We would like to win it? Yes. In the last four seasons we have made one final and one semi-final. We are one of only three teams to have made the knockout stage every season since 2012-2013, along with Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. We are number four in the UEFA coefficient. The president was very direct this summer with the new sports strategy saying that the Champions League is not an obsession,” the man who has held this position since June 2022 and who was previously in charge of the partnerships sector told the BBC . of PSG between April 2018 and June 2022. Satisfied with the financial power of the reigning French champions, Armstrong also believes that even a departure at the end of the season of Kylian Mbappé would not affect Parisian revenues.
“He’s a great player, of course, and he’s important from a sporting point of view. But commercially we are bigger than any player. It's about the brand and what we're building. We know we will always have a competitive team on the field. There will always be investments on and off the field to continue growing. » And contrary to what one might think, Paris is not primarily banking on Qatari investments to survive. “Six of our 35 sponsors are from Qatar. This represents less than 20% of our overall turnover. It is clear that some Qatari brands want to associate with a Qatari club. Qatar Airways is the sponsor of many properties. They were present on the jerseys of FC Barcelona and AS Roma. Having them on our jersey is a normal thing and you can understand why they want to do it.
PSG wants to stay at the Parc des Princes
Another sensitive subject: the future PSG stadium. For several months, a conflict has opposed the Paris town hall to the club. The red and blue bosses believed they could afford the Parc des Princes in exchange for a check of less than €50 million. Categorical refusal from the City which values the Parisian enclosure at a minimum of €300 million. Faced with this situation, PSG is considering other options, even if the plan to buy the Stade de France seems to be in decline. The idea of building a brand new stadium exists, but Armstrong recalled that the club's preferred path remains the renovation of the Park.
“Our preference is clearly for the redevelopment of the Parc des Princes. This is our historic home. This is where we want to be, where the fans want us to be and it's within the city limits. But the money needed to make it the stadium it needs to be is enormous. We're willing to spend the money and we want to, but the city has to sell us the building. We have been very clear and we have been seriously studying other options for a year. » The town hall has been notified. Finally, at a time when QSI is seeking to sell a percentage of its shares in PSG to foreign investors, Armstrong reaffirmed that such a maneuver was not intended to prepare the ground for a total sale of the club by the Qataris. “There is no point in selling the club. It's just about taking the business to the next level and opening up key markets. » The messages got through.