Tottenham repays COVID loan, frees up funds for signings

LONDON (AP) — Tottenham announced Friday it had paid back the 175 million pounds ($243 million) it borrowed from the Bank of England as part of a coronavirus loan scheme, freeing up cash that could help the Premier League club sign players and a new manager.

The north London club said it repaid the low-interest loan from the 250 million pounds ($347 million) it recently raised from institutional investors.

“The club’s ability to manage effectively throughout the COVID period led to discussions with the same institutions that supported the club in 2019 to refinance stadium funding,” Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy said in a statement.

“Our institutional investors and banks,” he continued, “have been supportive and positive throughout the pandemic despite the uncertainty in the economy and the lack of fans at the stadium for the past two seasons, for which we are very grateful.”

Tottenham was one of dozens of businesses that borrowed from the central bank’s COVID Corporate Financing Facility last year to tide them over during the pandemic and had pledged not to use the funds for player acquisitions.

The club, still in search of a manager after finishing seventh in the Premier League, had reported an annual loss of 63.9 million pounds ($88.7 million) for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2020, due to the pandemic and fans being shut out of stadiums.

When Tottenham reported its fiscal year-end financial results in November, the club also warned of losing out on more than 150 million pounds ($208 million) in revenue if coronavirus restrictions prevented supporters returning through the season. Fans only returned in limited numbers for the final home game of the season.

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