Why Rotherham United need chairman Tony Stewart

Accounts released last week covering the 2023/24 Championship relegation season showed that the club were losing money at the rate of £87,000 a week before players sales were factored in.

Kieran Maguire, a university lecturer and the man behind the esteemed Price of Football podcast, describes the chairman's level of support as “very generous”.

The Millers' wage bill of £12.9 million last term was the highest in their history. They had underlying losses of £4.5m and owe Stewart's company, ASD Lighting, £5.2m.

“Rotherham are reliant on Tony's backing,” Maguire told the Advertiser. “They don't generate enough money to pay their bills themselves.

“If he wasn't there the wage bill would have to be reduced by a third or perhaps a half. Then you're looking at the bottom half of League One, top half of League Two as your benchmark.”

The Millers have spent seven of the last 11 seasons in the Championship. They have endured another troubled campaign following the drop, however, and are in 14th spot in League One despite a playing budget nearly 50 per cent bigger than than one in the 2021/22 third-tier promotion season.

Maguire maintains that criticism of the chairman's level is unfair and says that the club is run in the most sustainable way possible.

“We all want somebody to come in, wave a magic wand and spend millions and millions of pounds, but we all want to win the Lottery as well,” he said. “It doesn't mean it's going to happen.

“And why don't we go and spend all of our wages each week on Lottery tickets? It's because we know it's highly unlikely to get us a winner.

“You have to apply the same criteria to owners of clubs. Tony's been very generous.”

The £5m-plus debt to ASD is likely to increase now that Rotherham have lost around £7m from their share of football's TV deal because of their relegation.

“I would expect that figure to grow,” Maguire said. “My main concern is that this year the TV money will drop from around £9m to probably about £2m.

“That's going to be a big hit in terms of the club's overall revenues. They're going to go down by at least a third. Then, of course, you've got lower attendances in League One. You're not on TV as much either, so that hits your commercial arm as well.”