Feyenoord Posts 12.6 Million Euro Loss as Staff Costs Surge
Feyenoord closed the 2025/26 financial year with a net loss of 12.6 million euros, driven by a sharp drop in revenue and a significant expansion in payroll and administrative overhead. Financial journalist Tom Knipping, analyzing the club’s annual figures on the FR12.nl program FC Bankzaken, reported that the Rotterdam club’s turnover fell from 166.7 million euros in 2024/25 to 115.2 million euros over the past season.
Total costs reached 140.9 million euros, resulting in an operational loss of 25.7 million euros. Even after factoring in a positive transfer result of 9.4 million euros, the club still faced a deficit of 16.3 million euros before interest and taxes. Across the last five financial years, Feyenoord’s combined net profit stands at 22.1 million euros, with four of those seasons finishing in the black.
Staff Numbers Rise Sixty Percent in Five Years
Knipping singled out the rapid expansion of the club’s workforce as a primary driver of financial strain. The number of full-time equivalent (FTE) positions at Feyenoord climbed from 277 in the 2021/22 season to 444 in 2025/26, representing a sixty percent increase. This total leaves the Rotterdam side with 86 more full-time staff members than rivals PSV Eindhoven.
The reporting highlights a mismatch between organizational size and commercial return. While PSV operates its own stadium and manages its merchandising directly, Feyenoord has outsourced its merchandising operations. Despite this, Feyenoord employs a considerably larger workforce. Ajax leads the Eredivisie in commercial revenue at approximately 90 million euros, while PSV generates roughly 5 million euros more than Feyenoord despite supporting a much smaller organizational footprint.
Knipping schrikt van Feyenoord-cijfers: ''De organisatie is geëxplodeerd'' https://t.co/ndpSCnmz5p
The integration with the stadium is projected to add roughly one hundred additional FTEs this season, pushing Feyenoord's total workforce to approximately 544 positions—far surpassing Ajax and sitting roughly 180 roles above PSV.
Personnel Costs Climb Past UEFA Thresholds
Salaries and personnel expenses experienced a parallel surge, rising from 49.3 million euros in 2021/22 to 89.7 million euros by 2025/26. Consequently, Feyenoord spent 78 percent of its total turnover on personnel during the past campaign, up sharply from 55 percent the previous year. Knipping noted that this expenditure eclipses the 70 percent ceiling recommended by UEFA.
The high wage bill coincided with a difficult European campaign in the UEFA Europa League, compounding the financial impact. Knipping questioned the oversight of the supervisory board, noting that PSV operated with similar personnel expenditures while winning the league title and competing in the UEFA Champions League.
Player Write-Downs Limit Transfer Profit
Player amortization and impairment charges added heavily to the deficit. Over the 2024/25 and 2025/26 seasons, Feyenoord recorded a combined 81.9 million euros in standard amortization alongside 26.3 million euros in special write-downs on squad valuations, bringing total accounting charges over two years to 108.2 million euros.
Despite generating a club-record 62 million euros in player sales—including departures such as Dávid Hancko, Igor Paixão, Antoni Milambo, Quilindschy Hartman, and winter arrival Quinten Timber—the net transfer profit remained constrained due to escalating squad acquisition costs. Knipping observed that amortization charges for the entire squad have surged from roughly 15 million euros during Arne Gray Slot’s tenure to approximately 40 million euros under subsequent management.
New Leadership Assesses Restructuring Options
Former general and technical director Dennis te Kloese oversaw a period of heavy investment that included spending millions on transfer fees last summer. However, Knipping concluded that combining the general and technical director roles created an unsustainable structure with insufficient internal checks.
Incoming leadership under Robert Eenhoorn has already begun evaluating the club’s health, exploring contract dissolutions over the summer to trim expenses. Despite the structural and financial adjustments required, the club retains valuable capital on the pitch, including young contributors such as Givairo Read and Anis Hadj Moussa, alongside ongoing participation in the UEFA Champions League.
