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Arsenal blow Tottenham out the water as new info emerges, £235m outlay could be key
Arsenal have a substantial lead over fierce rivals Tottenham in one key financial area.
On the pitch, it is clear to see where the balance of power lies in North London.
The Gunners have finished ahead of Spurs in every campaign since 2016-17 – and that gap has widened over the last two campaigns.
Mikel Arteta‘s side have finished 2nd in successive seasons, while Tottenham have ended the term in 8th and 5th in 2022-23 and 2023-24.
That achievement now looks all the more impressive given the latest financial analysis that has been revealed by a top industry authority.
Arsenal far more efficient with cash then Spurs
According to a report published by the excellent group, Arsenal are the second-best value for money club in the Premier League.
They achieved an efficiency score of 263, which was some way beyond 3rd-place Brighton and bettered only by Aston Villa’s score of 284.
The calculation takes the points achieved by clubs in 2023-24 and comapres them their expected points, which is based on wage bill, net transfer spend, suad value and wages-to-spend ratio.
Based on this calculation, Spurs are all the way down in 13th.
However, their efficiency score of 110 was not as poor as those of Liverpool (88), Chelsea (13) and Man United (12).
Essentially, the study illustrates that, while there is no doubt Arsenal have spent big, they have spent well.
- READ MORE FOOTBALL FINANCE ANALYSIS: Arsenal board may be making £85m off-pitch decision that Mikel Arteta will hate
Arsenal v Tottenham finances: Who comes out on top?
This is an open argument.
While Arsenal have been found to have performed better financially relative to their on-pitch output, Spurs remain one of the best run Premier League clubs.
Their turnover of almost £550m in 2022-23 was substantially higher than Arsenal’s total of £465m.
That margin will shrink when the two rivals release their accounts for 2023-24, but it won’t be eliminated.
Arsenal, however, have been proven to have a higher EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation), another key metric which evaluates performance based on non-operating income.
In layman’s terms, that’s revenue generated outside of things like transfer fees.
Arsenal’s EBITDA is the best in the Premier League, although Spurs aren’t far behind in 4th place.
In terms of their enterprise value (the price a potential investor would have to pay to take over), Tottenham have been one of the fastest growing clubs over the past 12 months, but they are still worth less than Arsenal.
There are a million different ways to assess who is in better shape, but none are definitive.