AFC Wimbledon are looking for new investors as their situation is ‘not currently sustainable’. The Dons announced in October that they had decided to look for investment, and now they are in talks with potential investors, with plans to sell a minority stake in the club.
Why do AFC Wimbledon need investment?
AFC Wimbledon have announced a £600,000 hole in their finances, due to operating losses.
Although the club has reduced its overall debt by £2m, it still has one of the lowest playing budgets in League One, ranking 23rd out of the 24 teams.
The Dons’ board released a statement explaining the club’s financial position.
‘The financial landscape across League One and League Two remains extremely tough,’ it said.
‘Despite good progress made in growing the Club’s revenues and managing costs, our outlook remains unchanged. Our finances will become very tight at the end of this season.’
The statement added that ‘competing in the EFL at Plough Lane with our current structure is not currently sustainable.’
It went on: ‘We believe that we have to find partner investors who share our values and commitment to fan ownership to help us improve our finances and allow us to grow further.
‘Since then the board have been in conversations with potential investors prepared to take a minority stake in the Club and also contribute working capital to help us break even and have a more competitive playing budget.
‘Our underlying financial challenges have been tempered by significant player sales over the last three years, but we cannot rely on this every year.’
What is the state of AFC Wimbledon’s finances?
AFC Wimbledon released a report in June this year titled ‘The Finances of Football and AFC Wimbledon June 2025’ which laid bare the financial situation for clubs across Leagues One and Two.
In it, Wimbledon revealed they had an operating loss of £1.6m, which was reduced by £1m of player sales, leaving a total loss of £600,000.
There was some positive news. The Dons’ turnover increased by £10.2m – an increase of 13% on the previous year.
As well as reducing their overall debt by £2m, the club repaid £1.4m of Plough Lane Bonds.
The rest of the report made for shocking reading. It revealed that the average loss for a League One club in 2023-24 was £5.2m, which was three times more than the average loss in 2019-20.
The story was no better in League Two. The average losses in 2023-24 were £2.17m, compared to just £0.37m in 2019-20.
The report also highlighted how few clubs make a profit. In 2023-24, only four clubs across both leagues made a profit, down from 11 in 2019-20, while wages are rapidly outgrowing revenue, increasing by 43.6% over the last five years.
This shows the uphill battle that clubs in the lower leagues face to remain sustainable, and if this trend continues, things won’t get any easier in the coming years.
You can read the full report here.
Can AFC Wimbledon buck the trend?
AFC Wimbledon rose from the ashes of Wimbledon FC in 2002 after Wimbledon FC relocated to Milton Keynes.
Formed by supporters – and still partly fan-owned today – Wimbledon came all the way up from the Combined Counties League Premier Division to compete in the EFL.
They were promoted to League Two in the 2011-12 season, finishing 16th, and since then have bounced between Leagues One and Two.
They have had a great start to the 2025-26 League One season. They are currently seventh with 25 points, having won eight of their 15 games.
AFC Wimbledon are one of only three fan-owned clubs in the EFL – the other two are Exeter City and Newport County – and are known as one of the best run clubs in the country.
In fact, they came top of the 2023 Fair Play Index, which scores all 92 clubs on topics like financial sustainability and fan engagement, and their fan ownership model has been praised.
So if any club can find a way to thrive in these tough financial times, it’s AFC Wimbledon.
