Hibs' atrocious accounts leave dark stain and no easy fix for embattled regime amid £7.1m loss

Hibs called their financial results "disappointing" when releasing them into the public domain on Friday, but let's not put lipstick on a very ugly pig here.

A £7.1 million loss contained within the Easter Road club's accounts for the year ending June 2024 is a grotesque figure for a club of Hibs’ size and eclipses the 3.9m deficit posted this time last year. Back then, then chief executive Ben Kensell said the next set would be better. "If I'm sat here talking about this in a year's time, I think you'll see some very healthy numbers coupled with sporting success," Kensell said in an interview with Sky Sports. How wrong was that prediction? It is therefore no surprise that last month the ex-Norwich financial chief left his post. The latest statistics are a dark stain on his Hibs tenure.

Hibs director Ian Gordon in the stands at Easter Road. (Photo by Craig Foy / SNS Group) | SNS Group

This is also another damaging moment for the Gordon family, whose standing with some of the Hibs supporters was already on very shoogly ground. Ian Gordon told this newspaper last September that Hibs were already "over budget" and added: "We've had tons of commercial growth with the business side of the club, but we've been chasing football success and obviously there have been some mistakes along the way. That's why we are in this situation now, but our family is committed to that overspend until we find the football success that allows the club to be sustainable.”

Turnover at Hibs has risen by 28 per cent, so behind the scenes some good work has clearly been done. Unfortunately, it has been overshadowed by off-field developments, not least having to write off £1 million when a commercial partner went bust and the legal fees that go along with that. There was a £3m spend on sprucing up Easter Road - new LED floodlights and rail seating being two examples - which will no doubt be seen as a long-term investment.

And then there are the failures on the field as well. The last set of accounts were put down to an overspend on players and the high wage bill, plus poor performances in the league. While this time Hibs banked money from reaching the play-off round of the Europa Conference League, their domestic displays were not good enough. Hibs finished eighth in the league and had to sack not one but two management teams in Lee Johnson and Nick Montgomery, incurring a significant six-figure cost.

Hibs unveil Nick Montgomery alongside chief executive Ben Kensell and Ian Gordon on September 11, 2023 - but he was sacked before the end of the season. (Photo by Paul Devlin / SNS Group) | SNS Group

Ghosts of the past continue to shroud Hibs' wage bill, which rose by £2.3m to £11.2m. Hibs' staff costs to turnover ratio has climbed to an exorbitant 81 per cent. There are some very high earners at Hibs bringing in an unsustainable wage for the team's overall performance. It will grate supporters that the likes of Nohan Kenneh, Jair Tavares and Harry McKirdy were on hugely significant money yet not contributing at all to the team. Kenneh is out of contract in the summer and on loan at Ross County, Tavares is on loan at Motherwell but under contract until 2026, while McKirdy left by mutual consent last week and is at Bromley.

Hibs spent close to £2m last season in bringing Dylan Vente, Elie Youan, Dylan Levitt, Jojo Wollacott and Riley Harbottle to the club, plus a significant wage investment was made in Myziane Maolida when he moved on loan successfully in January from Hertha Berlin. And while £1m was made by the transfer of Elias Melkersen to Stromsgodset and a sell-on clause invoked by Josh Doig's move from Verona to Sassuolo, Hibs’ overall transfer business left them in the red.

So many of Hibs' squad are out of contract in the summer, which is why there will be a massive cut in the wage bill. It is hard to envision first-teamers such as Martin Boyle and Rocky Bushiri staying on their current terms. Kenneh, Chris Cadden, Lewis Miller, Junior Hoilett and Dwight Gayle are other senior players whose deals end in June, while loanees Josef Bursik, Kwon Hyeok-kyu and Mykola Kuharevich will return to their parent clubs.

Rocky Bushiri and Martin Boyle are out of contract at Hibs at the end of the season. (Photo by Paul Devlin / SNS Group) | SNS Group

Don't expect Hibs' picture to look much better next February year unless they finish third in the Premiership or win the Scottish Cup. It will take another two years for the dire overspend in the football department to be redressed properly. The club is currently paying the price for errors dating back several seasons.

Ian Gordon has said that he is trying to put things right. He is due to speak at Hibs' AGM on February 25, which promises to be a lively affair. It is understood that the Gordon family will be the payers of this nasty £7.1m bill. Back in September, when asked if he is dedicated to making sure the club is not saddled with debt, Gordon replied: “One hundred per cent. That's why we wiped the debt in February when the Black Knight deal went through. We don't want the club to have debt, so that was a big reason behind that. We're well aware of the overspend and our family is committed to that."

Will that be enough to curry favour with Hibs fans? The Gordon legacy so far is shrouded by mistakes - some of them costly - and while the heat on the board has been turned down recently due to Hibs' rise from bottom of the table up to fifth in Premiership, Scottish football is volatile and it does not take much for a downturn in fortunes. Facing a tricky tie away at Ayr United in the Scottish Cup, tonight would not be a good time to end a ten-game unbeaten run in the wake of such financial results.

It is not like Hibs do not have wealthy backers who can prop up misspending with largesse - the Gordon family is minted, and shareholder/sporting partner Black Knight FC also has huge resources. But the losses that are being racked up year after year are simply not sustainable. This current regime - unpopular with some fans - still has so much work to do, on and off the pitch.