Despite being relegated from the Bundesliga, VfL Bochum posted a record profit last season. A forecast for the current season is already available.

Despite being relegated from the Bundesliga, VfL Bochum generated more revenue last season than ever before. VfL Managing Director Ilja Kaenzig announced this on Tuesday evening at the club’s general meeting.

Revenue for the past season totaled just over 96 million euros. Overall, VfL posted a profit of 6.45 million euros, after club officials had originally expected a surplus of only one million euros.

The profit was due, among other things, to the club saving on the salaries of former coaches Thomas Letsch and Peter Zeidler following the termination of their contracts during the season. In addition, streaming provider DAZN made a large retroactive payment. The sale of the stadium center to the municipal holding company also contributed to the profit. Relegation also played a role, as VfL had to pay its players fewer points-based bonuses and no relegation-avoidance bonuses at all.

However, the relegation to the 2. Bundesliga will have a significant impact on the current fiscal year (July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026). Revenue is set to drop significantly and is projected to come in at 65 million euros. This is primarily due to a decline in TV revenue of 17.9 million euros and a decrease in advertising revenue of 6.4 million euros.

Equity at the end of June stood at 9.7 million euros; it is projected to fall to 5.2 million euros after this season—following a profit in the previous season, VfL is now anticipating a corresponding loss of 4.5 million euros. Thanks to the profit in the previous season, the club can accept a “strategic loss,” said Kaenzig.

Furthermore, Kaenzig announced that the club is on track to be debt-free by 2027. In recent years, VfL has reduced millions in long-term liabilities, such as those from the 2020 KfW loan taken out due to the COVID-19 crisis. By June 2026, the debt is expected to be down to just 300,000 euros, and by March 2027, the debt is expected to be fully repaid.

The professional team’s licensing budget for this season is around 21.6 million euros. This places VfL in the top third of the 2. Bundesliga. In terms of transfer revenue, however, Bochum is only average. Therefore, the club’s clear goal is to increase transfer proceeds “to at least 8 to 10 million euros per season.” By comparison, this summer’s revenue from player sales totaled just under 5 million euros.

You can follow the general meeting via live ticker on the WAZ website and learn more about the background of these figures.