Arsenal's Brutal Job Cuts Expose the Ugly Financial Reality of Modern Soccer

Arsenal are set to make at least 60 staff members redundant just weeks after awarding Mikel Arteta the highest managerial salary in the Premier League, according to multiple reports.

Arteta is set to earn in excess of £20 million ($26 million) per year following the signing of a lucrative new contract earlier this month — negotiations that took place while an external consultancy firm was simultaneously brought in to identify cost-cutting measures elsewhere in the club.

A report from The Telegraph indicates this process has resulted in around 60 imminent job losses across non-playing departments, though the specific positions affected have yet to be disclosed.

The announcement has drawn widespread criticism, especially given its timing alongside Arteta's new deal and reports that midfielder Declan Rice is nearing a contract extension of his own, with a potential salary exceeding £350,000 ($460,000) per week.

Those figures stand in stark contrast to what is earned behind the scenes at the club, where revenue grew by £319 million ($423 million) between 2022 and 2025 — a disparity that has prompted many to question the moral justification for the decision.

Arsenal have long promoted club values that include "championing each other," "acting for a winning culture," and "doing the right thing (even when no one is looking)." The revelation that 60 members of that community are being let go was always going to be poorly received, no matter how the club attempts to frame it.