Arsenal are poised to break a club record when they release their accounts for the 2023-24 season.
It was another season of progress for the Gunners, both on and off the pitch.
Mikel Arteta‘s side narrowly missed out on the Premier League title for a second successive season, but their advancements have had a financial impact that bodes well for 2024-25.
As well as alucrative return to the Champions League after seven seasons away, Arsenal also signed and consolidated a number of new commercial deals.
That, alongside a surge in matchday income and the Premier League’s huge TV deal, mean that the Gunners are in a strong position going into the new season.
Arsenal announce new commercial chief
As relayed by Sportcal, Arsenal have announced the promotion of Omar Shaikh to a new role as global partnership and ventures director.
This effectively makes Shaikh second in command to Juliet Slot in the club’s commercial department, which is responsible for squeezing maximum value out of the Arsenal brand.
Shaikh is a respected operator and joined the club as partnerships director less than a year ago following a stint as vice president of commercial development at Liverpool.
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Arsenal to reveal club record commercial revenue for 2023-24
With the club’s main sponsorship deals with Adidas and Emirates locked down until 2034 and 2030 respectively, Shaikh’s responsibility will be to push the envelope in other areas.
Under Adidas, Arsenal have been keen to further branch out into streetwear and other merchandising opportunities as opposed to solely kit sales, for example.
Shaikh will also be charged with overseeing either the renegotiation of their sleeve sponsorship deal with Visit Rwanda or finding a new deal entirely.
Commercial revenue rose to a club-record £173m in 2022-23 and is expected to climb even higher when they release their accounts for 2023-24.
Shaikh’s job is to consolidate that growth and try and close the commercial gap on their rivals in the rest of the so-called Big Six, all of whom earn more in this department than the Gunners.