The end of the financial year for the Carlton Football Club is just over one month away (October 31st) but the outlook is certainly very positive with the club expecting to announce a profit in excess of $3 million for the year. This is a far cry from the disappointing results in recent years including last year when the result was a $3.2 million loss.

Importantly for the future almost half this profit will be used to reduce the existing debt as the club’s position continues to turnaround. After starting the year with a debt of $8 million, the club will use some of the profits to reduce this to $6.5 million.

Carlton CEO Greg Swann has confirmed the expected result with Melbourne’s Herald Sun and said that everyone was delighted with the result adding that it is indicative of the rebirth of the club.

“There is a really good spirit around the club and a lot of people have returned to the club. It’s an exciting place to be,” Swann told the Herald Sun.

While the media focus on the well publicised function at Raheen, the home of Carlton President Richard Pratt, in March together with the additional revenue received from the AFL through the new broadcasting rights as the major reasons for the increased revenue, Swann was very quick to sing the praises of Carlton members and corporate supporters who have returned to the club in 2007.

“It is always a good media story to talk about the big fundraising event and the new broadcast rights and both have had a significant impact on our fortunes off the field. However the real growth, both in revenue and in terms of people being involved with Carlton, has been through membership and functions and events. These are vital areas as the Carlton Football Club is about people and having more people involved certainly adds to the excitement and the potential to continue to build an even stronger club,” Swann said.

“We have had a record membership this year (35,431 up from 28,756 in 2006) and we certainly thank the members for being a part of Carlton and look forward to their continued support. The increased membership reflects the renewed interest in Carlton and has resulted in improved match attendances, more merchandise sales, larger attendances and improved profits from club functions and an increase in the number of sponsors.”

While very pleased with the expected financial results for 2007, Swann was quick to point out the need for everyone to continue to be involved and to work together to ensure the continued success in 2008.

“The turnaround really started with the appointment of Richard as President and the resources of Visy have proven an enormous fillip. As well as reducing our debt the money will be used in the football department to improve our facilities and increase our recruiting resources and player development,” Swann added.

“We can now look forward to everyone involved with Carlton working together to ensure the rebirth of the Carlton Football Club continues in 2008.”