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Reading’s latest financial accounts for 2024/25 reveal a dramatic decline in wages, highlighting the scale of the club’s cost-cutting measures following years of financial instability under previous owner Dai Yongge.
The figures show the average weekly wage at the club fell to £5,918 in 2025, the lowest since records in this dataset began in 2008 and a sharp drop from £7,544 in 2024.
Long-term decline after peak spending
Reading’s wage trajectory over the past 17 years reflects the club’s fluctuating fortunes.
The highest average weekly wage came in 2013 at £22,022, during a period of heavy investment following promotion to the Premier League in the 2011/12 campaign where the Royals were crowned champions of the Championship. Reading managed just one season in the top flight as they were relegated in the 2012/13 season.
Wages remained relatively high through the late 2010s, peaking again at £19,436 in 2019.
However, since 2020, wages have fallen consistently:
2020: £17,920
2021: £15,359
2022: £12,078
2023: £11,672
2024: £7,544
2025: £5,918
The 2025 figure represents a 73% drop from the 2013 peak and nearly 50% decrease since 2020.
Wages still high relative to income
Despite falling salaries, Reading’s wage-to-turnover ratio remains high.
In 2025, wages accounted for 127% of club income, meaning the club still spent more on salaries than it generated in revenue.
This continues a pattern seen in recent years:
2019: 226%
2020: 222%
2021: 243%
2022: 150%
2023: 131%
2024: 158%
2025: 127%
The club’s most sustainable period came between 2008 and 2017, when wages typically ranged between 60% and 95% of income.
Shift in recruitment strategy
The sharp fall in wages reflects Reading’s move toward younger players, academy graduates and short-term contracts.
The club’s financial pressures in recent seasons had forced a shift in recruitment as the Royals were placed under transfer embargoes for several transfer windows under previous owner Dai Yongge which limited the club to only signing free agents or loan players.
While the wage cuts have reduced overall expenditure, the club still faces challenges in bringing its wage bill fully in line with revenue.
Signs of stabilisation
Although still above 100%, the wage-to-income ratio has improved from its peak of 243% in 2021 to 127% in 2025, suggesting gradual financial stabilisation.
The continued reduction in average wages also indicates tighter spending controls as the club attempts to rebuild sustainably.
For supporters, the figures underline the scale of Reading’s financial reset — with player wages now at their lowest level in almost two decades.
