How much money Cardiff City actually lost from relegation - Vincent Tan must cringe | OneFootball

Cardiff City posted a significant loss as the club suffered relegation to League One

Cardiff City suffered relegation to League One in 2025 with the team coming bottom of the table after a disastrous season which saw the Bluebirds go through three separate managers in Erol Bulut, Omer Riza and even Aaron Ramsey at the back-end of the campaign.

Brian Barry-Murphy was appointed in the subsequent summer with the task of bringing the Welsh outfit back to the Championship at the first attempt.

It has been a solid first year in charge for the Irishman, who is now just seven games away from overseeing a top two finish with the Bluebirds.

However, it will still sting for supporters that their team spent a year down in the third division for the first time since 2003

And owner Vincent Tan will have felt the financial impact of the club dropping out of the second division.

Cardiff will be hoping that this season in League One will be a one-off and that they will go back to being a mainstay of the top two tiers upon their return.

Cardiff City’s £35.1 million relegation loss

It has been reported by the Daily Mail that Cardiff posted a loss of £35.1 million as a result of their relegation from the Championship.

The Bluebirds are part of an increasing trend in which clubs in the EFL are posting significant financial losses.

Suffering the drop from the second tier to League One has had a particular impact at the Cardiff City Stadium, and Tan will be feeling the hit.

The financial loss also highlights the importance of getting back into the Championship as quickly as possible in order to recover some of the loss in revenue they’ll have suffered with relegation.

The average League One side posted a loss of £8.23 million for the 2024/25 campaign compared to an average of £4.2 million from the previous season.

This further indicates that spending has risen at a higher level than revenue, which could have a particular impact at Cardiff for this year when their latest financial details are revealed.

Conversely, the club could bounce back in the following 12 months due to their impending promotion back to the Championship.

Barry-Murphy’s side are second in the League One table with just seven games remaining, with third place Bolton Wanderers 11 points behind.

The Bluebirds need just 11 points from their final seven fixtures to secure a top two spot, with league leaders Lincoln City seven ahead.

Next up for Cardiff is a trip to face Peterborough United on 6 April in a 3pm kick-off.

Cardiff City’s on-pitch woes will hurt off the pitch

The cost of relegation is quite expensive, and it can have quite an impact beyond just spending one year down in League One for Cardiff.

The financial impact could leave them struggling to get back to a strong competitive level in the Championship unless Tan is willing to invest his own money.

Cardiff have built a strong platform under Barry-Murphy, and their focus on the academy could prove quite lucrative in the long run.

But there’s no doubt that this £35.1 million loss figure indicates a club that needs to find better sources of revenue quickly, as it could make it very difficult for the team to ever reach the Premier League again.