The figures are part of the group’s Annual Review of Football Finance and confirm that UK Premiership clubs remain the biggest earners in world football – with the top 20 clubs generating a total of more than £1.3bn in revenue.

According to Deloitte, the top five European leagues in England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain accounted for 54 per cent of the annual 11.6bn euro (£7.9bn) European football market while the top five generated revenues of 6.3bn euro (£4.3bn) in 2004-05 – a growth of 8 per cent on the previous year.

Of the English clubs, Manchester United reported the highest operating profits, with £33m, down from a record £52m in 2003-04, while Liverpool’s UEFA Champions League success helped to boost its operating profits to £25m.

Attendance levels remain strong, following a period of “tremendous growth” through the 1990s. Average attendances have risen from 21,159 during the first year of the Premiership to 33,887 in 2005-06, a growth of 60 per cent.

The report also shows that Premiership stadia boasted an average capacity of 90 per cent across the 380 games for the ninth successive year.

With 2007-08 being the first year that the new Premiership broadcast deals will come into effect, Deloitte predicts that there will be a 67 per cent increase in value generated from the recent sale of live rights. This is likely to drive overall revenues to more than £1.7bn for the 20 Premiership clubs.

Overall, Football League clubs’ revenues increased by 5 per cent from £440m to £460m, with almost all of the £20m increase in revenue relating to the Championship (£19m).

However, despite a 7 per cent revenue growth, Championship football clubs’ operating losses increased to £42m in 2004-05 from £35m in the previous year.

Also – for the first time in the league’s history – Premiership clubs’ total player wages have dropped.

Although the decrease in player wages and salaries is relatively small – at 3 per cent – in comparison with the average annual wage increases of 20 per cent over the past 10 years, Deloitte analysts believe it to be a “highly significant season” in the finances of the top English football clubs. The £26m reduction is equivalent to £1.3m per club.

In terms of reductions in total wages, individually, Chelsea saved £5.9m, Arsenal dropped £3.9m while Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur were both down £1.4m, meaning all the clubs achieved reductions while still finishing in some of the top places in the league. Details: www.deloitte.co.uk