Evaluation of the relationship between sporting performance and financial performance of football clubs

Football, one of the most important popular industries today, is not just a game as it was in the past, but a huge sector due to its economic, cultural, and social importance. Therefore, there are two basic conditions for clubs to survive in this sector under the current competitive conditions. These are sporting and financial success, which are closely related to each other. Some European countries (Italy, England, Scotland, Germany, France, Portugal, and the Netherlands) began the industrialization process in football much earlier, and their football clubs have achieved sustainable sporting and financial success through corporatization. However, in our country, this process only gained momentum from the late 1990s onwards, with some clubs beginning to be managed with a commercial mindset, similar to some European countries, as part of the incorporation process. During this process, our four major clubs (Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray, and Trabzonspor), whose shares are traded on the BIST, have occasionally achieved both financial and sporting success by opening up to the capital market. However, since these successes were not sustainable, it is also a fact that there is a significant difference between the four major football clubs in our country and the clubs in the aforementioned European countries. This study examines the relationship between the sporting and financial performance of some clubs competing in our country and other European countries, whose financial data is available (Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray, Trabzonspor, Ajax, Benfica, Borussia Dortmund, Celtic, Juventus, Lazio, Manchester United, Olympique Lyon, and Roma) competing in our country and other European countries, with financial data available. The study was prepared by developing two models using nine variables, based on data from 13 European football clubs for the 2014-2024 period. The two models of the study, the sporting performance model and the financial performance model, were examined together. In the sporting performance model, the clubs' national league rankings were set as the dependent variable, while market value, net profit, current ratio, return on assets, asset turnover ratio, debt-to-total-assets ratio, national league points, and European points were set as independent variables. In the second model, the financial performance model, the clubs' asset values were determined as the dependent variable, while market value, net profit, current ratio, asset turnover ratio, debt-to-total-assets ratio, national league points, national league ranking, and European points were determined as independent variables. The data showing the sports performance of the clubs examined in the study were obtained from the website "Maçkolik.com," while the data showing their financial performance were obtained from the clubs' financial statements. These two models were analyzed using the "Panel Data Random Effects Method." Before the Panel Data Analysis, some preliminary tests were conducted to ensure the method could be used. According to the analysis results, a direct relationship was found between sporting performance and financial performance. In the final part of the study, the results obtained based on statistical findings were shared, and recommendations were made to improve the financial performance of the clubs. Additionally, it was emphasized that financial success, coupled with effective management of the clubs and the need to align their competitive conditions as closely as possible, would also lead to athletic success.