Luton’s parachute payments of £32 million

[graingrover]

Luton Town have agreed a fee of £2.5M to sign striker Nathan Lowe from Stoke City.

The striker got 20 G/A in 22 league games for Walsall on loan in League Two last season. Luton believe he can make the jump up to League One.
But you can’t buy the team spirit and ownership/management ethic and back-room we have at DRFC

[selby]

  Grainge I agree with all that when things are going right in team sports, especially at professional level, until things go wrong.
  First it's the manager who has lost the dressing room and is tactically inept, then individual players who are not up to it, and all the time the supporters think the club is cheap scape, not having a decent budget, where has all the money gone? and the board want sacking is the end result, usually along with relegation.
  We start every season trying to avoid that scenario.

[steve@dcfd]

Luton still having premier league  Parachute payments in League one is wrong there other teams before the same. Birmingham and Wrexham had wealthy billionaire owners last season to justify their spending.
As for the player good luck to him we will have to see if he develops into a consistent striker and if he does they will get their money back as he moves up the ladder.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

Much of that money will be accounted for with current commitments plus with the financing of their new stadium it wouldn't be safe to assume they are flush with cash.

[IDM]

If they were crap enough to get relegated last season so still have parachute payments, good luck to them.!

[Alan Southstand]

Totally, totally unfair and it underlines what is wrong with parachute payments. Rewarded for failure!!

[rich1471]

I think a lot of the parachute payment money will go towards the new ground being built

[DearneValleyRover]

They are having to sell players and others are asking for moves, this is the last season of those payments, they will have to get rid of high earners even if they get promoted so the amount they spend will be tied in with that.

[Sammy Chung was King]

Money doesn’t guarantee that they will win the league. Their manager will have to mould the new players into a team. I like the business we’ve done. It is really unfair but how many times have Luton been in a position like this with the parachute payment?, good luck to them. They will be good runners up behind us.

[GazLaz]

Money doesn’t guarantee that they will win the league. Their manager will have to mould the new players into a team. I like the business we’ve done. It is really unfair but how many times have Luton been in a position like this with the parachute payment?, good luck to them. They will be good runners up behind us.

Think you said the same about Birmingham last season.

[RobTheRover]

I quite fancy them to f**k up spectacularly.

[sedwardsdrfc]

Totally, totally unfair and it underlines what is wrong with parachute payments. Rewarded for failure!!

To be fair it’s not rewarding failure they’d be much better off for not failing. I don’t like it but it seems a necessary evil with the money in the prem.

For example how can a promoted club attract players to compete in the prem and stay financially viable if they do get relegated. No potential signing is going to agree to a 80% wage cut on relegation. So they need something to given them a safety net if they do get relegated after trying to compete.

It’s already becoming a bit of a closed shop which isn’t good for the game imo

[drfchound]

They are having to sell players and others are asking for moves, this is the last season of those payments, they will have to get rid of high earners even if they get promoted so the amount they spend will be tied in with that.

To be fair though, Lowe should be a good signing for them.

[DearneValleyRover]

They are having to sell players and others are asking for moves, this is the last season of those payments, they will have to get rid of high earners even if they get promoted so the amount they spend will be tied in with that.

To be fair though, Lowe should be a good signing for them.

Depends, he didn’t make it at Stoke

[les@donr]

Their parachute payments didn’t save them from relegation. It can be a blessing or a curse.

[ForsolongaRover]

Much of that money will be accounted for with current commitments plus with the financing of their new stadium it wouldn't be safe to assume they are flush with cash.

Their accounts to 30/06/24 convey a rather cautious attitude and perhaps they went too far in that direction in the season just finished.

On the subject of the cost of a new stadium, this is what came up online when I posed the question:
"For example, a 10,000-seater stadium could cost between £10 million and £50 million, while a larger, modern stadium like Tottenham Hotspur's cost over £1 billion."

So given Luton's location within the London commuter belt, the parachute payments could well be comfortably sucked up with those numbers.   

[DonnyBazR0ver]

Much of that money will be accounted for with current commitments plus with the financing of their new stadium it wouldn't be safe to assume they are flush with cash.

Their accounts to 30/06/24 convey a rather cautious attitude and perhaps they went too far in that direction in the season just finished.

On the subject of the cost of a new stadium, this is what came up online when I posed the question:
"For example, a 10,000-seater stadium could cost between £10 million and £50 million, while a larger, modern stadium like Tottenham Hotspur's cost over £1 billion."

So given Luton's location within the London commuter belt, the parachute payments could well be comfortably sucked up with those numbers.   

Their new stadium was originally going to be built to a 18,000 capacity with a view to expanding it to @25k later down the line but, given their time in the Prem, they decided to go straight to the larger capacity.

Premier League promotion will save Luton £40m on increasing Power Court capacity https://share.google/ecjxyB37YtFSdCNTU

They have a couple of seasons to endure before they move and benefit from bigger revenues, assuming they don't suffer from overinflated building costs in the meantime. Probably a risk worth taking given how long overdue the new stadium has been.

[Chris Black come back]

Luton Town have agreed a fee of £2.5M to sign striker Nathan Lowe from Stoke City.

The striker got 20 G/A in 22 league games for Walsall on loan in League Two last season. Luton believe he can make the jump up to League One.
But you can’t buy the team spirit and ownership/management ethic and back-room we have at DRFC

On loan at Stockport County for this season.

[dknward2]

Think that should get them top 2 easy

[ForsolongaRover]

Think that should get them top 2 easy

Stoke obviously did not rate him too highly at Championship level. Will his impact at League 1 be so predictable? But perhaps you know more than you are telling us.

[GazLaz]

Look certainties for the title do Luton. 7/2 looks a great price. Best squad in the league by a mile for me.

[ncRover]

Look certainties for the title do Luton. 7/2 looks a great price. Best squad in the league by a mile for me.

Could argue one of the best managers too with where he got Wycombe to before leaving.

[selby]

  Just relegated big parachute payments, what odds were they to get promotion last season?

[In the box]

  Just relegated big parachute payments, what odds were they to get promotion last season?

In the past teams of a similar size went through this Barnsley , Blackpool Bolton , Wigan, Portsmouth etc they are fell and kept falling because this type of momentum has its own destination. Luton are no different their business plan was like the others not to get relegated but couldn’t sustain the level of expenditure needed to cover wages and ground improvements and keep loyal fans paying low season ticket prices. Millionaire owners don’t n spend money unless they’ve covered its potential loss first . Ryan Lowe is a panic buy and vain demonstration of their problems after having to shed players on higher wages and it could pay off, yet with several potential clubs who will be challenging its back to the drawing board . Rovers ,  Stockport and even Peterborough are all good out side bets to  spoil their  challenge. Rtid

[Chris Black come back]

I should add perhaps that Nathan Lowe is still very much a Stoke City player, with three years left on his contract there. He is loaned out to Stockport County.

[Bessie Red]

  Just relegated big parachute payments, what odds were they to get promotion last season?

In the past teams of a similar size went through this Barnsley , Blackpool Bolton , Wigan, Portsmouth etc they are fell and kept falling because this type of momentum has its own destination. Luton are no different their business plan was like the others not to get relegated but couldn’t sustain the level of expenditure needed to cover wages and ground improvements and keep loyal fans paying low season ticket prices. Millionaire owners don’t n spend money unless they’ve covered its potential loss first . Ryan Lowe is a panic buy and vain demonstration of their problems after having to shed players on higher wages and it could pay off, yet with several potential clubs who will be challenging its back to the drawing board . Rovers ,  Stockport and even Peterborough are all good out side bets to  spoil their  challenge. Rtid

Luton haven't bought Lowe, he has gone on a seaaon long loan to Stockport.

[ravenrover]

Which Lowe Ryan or Nathan?
Seems to be a bit of confusion

[Al4475]

I have always said, and still do, that Parachute Payments following relegation is wrong.

Give the club the money when they get to the league- say to them, "there's your £50m (as an example) reward for getting to this league - spend it wisely to try and stay up by all means, but get relegated and you ain't getting feck all else apart from the payment for your final league position - good luck,"

Regardless of division.

The whole, "Hard luck on your relegation, here's some money to help you in the league below" doesn't wash with me and never has.

Reward success by all means, but that should be it - a reward  for success.

[DonnyBazR0ver]

Yes  I was confused. I thought from the OP, Nathan Lowe had been sold to Luton, then to hear he'd been signed by Stockport on loan. However, he didn't sign for Luton so it's a loan from Stoke to Stockport.

I don't get the vibes that Luton are anywhere near certain for promotion and see Huddersfield and Stockport more likely with maybe Bolton as stronger contenders.

[Chris Black come back]

Wrexham look a disaster waiting to happen. Just paid £2m for Conor Coady. His wages will be what? 50k week? Also bid £7m for him the Ipswich lad.

Yes, there is major advertising revenue but they are going to find it far harder going this season in Championship. Lower mid table obscurity in the second tier isn’t quite the Hollywood story is it?