Expected trend for significant operating expenses

Personnel expenses

Personnel expenses account for approximately half of all operating expenditure. Portions of these personnel expenses are also dependent upon the club’s sporting success, because the professional squad is compensated on the basis of its performance, meaning that these expenditures are always commensurate with the club’s success, which itself is a source of income.

Action has already been taken to increase the variability of personnel expenses in the professional squad with regard to sporting performance (particularly in the UEFA competitions/qualifying for these competitions) and the associated effects on earnings and liquidity and going forward, to the extent possible, will be expanded to include all salary components. This includes applying a graduated scale to the UEFA competitions and reducing/increasing the salary components accordingly. Borussia Dortmund is constantly looking into what further adjustments it can make.

Other operating expenses

Cost management remains one of Borussia Dortmund’s key tools for ensuring its economic stability and competitiveness.

Central Purchasing further broadened its key role during the 2025/2026 season: By staunchly expanding its supplier base, entering into multi-year master agreements and pooling requirements across Group companies, potential savings were systematically identified and realised.

The stronger integration of structured procurement processes throughout the Group was a major achievement in the past season. The revised procurement strategy establishes binding standards for transparency, cost-effectiveness and compliance. A specialised platform was implemented to digitalise the ordering process, thereby making it easier to track all purchasing transactions and also harder to structurally circumvent procurement processes.

In addition, the groundwork was laid for the operational implementation of ESG supplier risk management. Suppliers with an annual purchasing volume of EUR 250+ thousand in annual revenue are to be systematically screened for human rights violations and environmental risks. Sustainability is therefore no longer an ancillary issue, but is becoming an integral part of strategic procurement decisions.

As in the previous year, it should be noted that operating expenses associated with a significant increase in revenue and a corresponding contribution to earnings may rise despite all optimisation efforts. The number of matches and success on the pitch remain key factors influencing the cost base. These costs are necessary in order to achieve the club’s sporting and economic objectives.

Going forward, Borussia Dortmund will continue to work to systematically refine its processes and structures – with the aim of reducing costs and strengthening cost control, minimising dependencies and laying the foundation for lasting success.