After trying the Jack Walker/ throw-money-at-it in the Championship and getting his fingers burned (to the tune of about £40m), Lansdown has understandably decided to try a different approach. To try and make the club self-sufficient. To survive without the crutch of a sugar-daddy bailing us out (as it became, instead of buying our way to the Prem).
So, for one, Brighton made us a silly offer for Sam Baldock in August, and in return we bought Agard, Freeman and whoever else we paid a fee for.
There is also the buying of players supposedly approaching their peak (value) years, 21-23 approx. But ones that have already established themselves at our current level. And players with "hunger," players with potential to do better. So at some point, if offers come in, we'll be selling some of the better ones, then buying some more up and coming ones.
The desso pitch, Lansdown coughed up £1.25m for. The rugby club are tennants, paying rent. All part of the football club turnover, as it's our ground, another "revenue stream" There is a Bristol Sport umbrella thing (City, the rugby club, plus basketball etc) he has created, but the football club gets the funds created by this, broadly speaking, because of ffp as well as Lansdown's desire to see the club be more sustainable and to not throw more than necessary down the toilet. He's chucking it around at the rugby team because there is no ffp in egg chasing.
Lansdown is spending £40m on refurbing Ashton Gate, with various mod cons to create more revenue and increase our turnover. We are never going to have a big enough turnover for the Championship without all this. Not from gates
So Lansdown is still spending loads, but not on over the hill wasters on stupid wages (again), on a 21st century ground, on professional people with relevant experience to run things off the pitch, on trying to buy his way into Prem rugby as this will bring in hundreds of thousands to our turnover, on structure and facilities.
It's worth noting that we have no exec boxes, the last club in top two divisions to get them when the main stand is rebuilt next season. That's one reason for low turnover. Many clubs in L1 and 2 and below have these.
He's still ploughing money in, but in different ways.
Cotterill has had a decent budget this year, Karl Robinson has mentioned once a month this season. At least. And Swindon say we have bought the league (they can have it. They're welcome to it). Cotts did a very good job last season though; this year, a superb one. We haven't topped a league for 60 years
