Heinz’s shot! It just grazed the post again!
After missing another scoring opportunity, Heinz knelt directly on the ground! He was probably praying to heaven for strength.
At this point, only 10 minutes remained in the match.
The Cambridge United fans in the stadium could no longer contain their excitement; they all stood up and began to surge towards the front rows, ready to rush onto the field to celebrate at any moment.
Bang!!!
In the counter-attack, Watts, Cambridge United’s defender, unleashed a powerful shot that slammed heavily against the crossbar of Hereford’s goal!
Before both sets of players could recover from the loud impact, a small figure deftly appeared in the ball's rebound path and gently headed it.
“4:0! The goal was scored by Vardy, Cambridge United’s other forward. It’s safe to say this goal has killed the match.”
Hereford’s fans were already silent, and Wembley Stadium had become a yellow and black ocean.
The match had reached the 90th minute, and the Head Coach kept glancing at his watch, ready to end the game at any moment.
This time, even Huang Hao had begun high-fiving his colleagues on the coaching staff in celebration.
Heinz and several of his teammates still hadn't given up.
After gaining possession, Andrew sprinted wildly towards the bottom side of Cambridge United’s penalty area!
At this point, Cambridge United’s players were finally much gentler and did not use malicious fouls to stop him.
Having successfully reached the byline, Andrew suddenly laid the ball off horizontally to Cole!
Cole, at the edge of the penalty area, pushed and passed the ball in one smooth motion! The ball once again found its way to Heinz’s feet!
Heinz gathered all his strength, channeling all his anger into his toe, and unleashed a powerful shot!
Cambridge United’s goalkeeper parried the ball out with one hand!
But Watts's clearance, by some strange twist of fate, hit the post, and the ball rebounded back to Heinz’s feet!
Unfortunately, Heinz no longer had a shooting angle, so he could only choose to pass the ball back to Cole, who shot!
Cambridge United’s goalkeeper once again saved the ball, and Andrew, who had rushed to the far post, made a sliding tackle!!!
Finally, he put the ball into Cambridge United’s goal!
Beep beep beep!
Goal disallowed!
The assistant referee on the far side had already raised his flag, further frustrating the Hereford players who had no heart to celebrate anyway. The goal was disallowed due to Heinz being offside in the scramble!
Subsequently, the Head Coach finally blew the whistle for the end of the match!
Hereford’s players knelt on the ground, tears mixed with sweat, falling together.
The main characters of Wembley Stadium tonight were destined not to be them.
With that whistle, Cambridge United’s substitute players eagerly rushed onto the field, embracing their teammates!
Mikel in the stands had long since stripped off his shirt, embracing his brothers, crying and roaring!
He had never imagined that this young Eastern man standing before him would truly lead Cambridge United back to League Two!
And that lost-and-found scarf would never have the chance to be thrown onto Huang Hao’s face again.
After high-fiving Darren in celebration, Huang Hao slowly closed his eyes, spread his arms, and savored this exhilarating moment.
Suddenly, Huang Hao felt his body lift!
After abruptly opening his eyes, he realized he was being lifted by the players and tossed high into the air!
So, this is what victory feels like!
Huang Hao, being tossed high for the first time, once again closed his eyes in enjoyment, feeling the applause and cheers from all directions of Wembley.
Captain Sager and Perrotta jointly raised the trophy symbolizing promotion, and ribbons rained down from the sky. At this moment, it was as if Cambridge United had won the Premier League!
Thus, after a turbulent season, Cambridge United finally secured promotion to England's fourth-tier League Two as the third-placed team in the League, and Huang Hao achieved his first step into professional League football!
“Turbulent Cambridge United, Strongly Enters League Two”
“Mysterious Eastern Magic Transforms Cambridge United”
“Perrotta Scores a Hat-trick, Cambridge United Successfully Promoted”
After the match, major newspapers published news of Cambridge United’s promotion. This truly delighted the Chinese members far across the ocean.
After all, promotion meant the team was more valuable, and promotion also meant a 10% greater chance of competing on the same stage as Liverpool and Manchester United.
After the team's promotion, a large number of fans who missed the first membership drive left messages on Cambridge United’s official website, hoping for membership to be reopened.
After consulting with other members of the board, Huang Hao believed that, first, Cambridge United’s membership should be treated as a brand to be created, and only fans who genuinely loved Cambridge United were qualified to join; secondly, hunger marketing should be used to make Cambridge United known worldwide and become an internet-famous team.
The next day, Cambridge United’s official website posted an announcement: A total of 45,000 membership slots would be opened for the new season, with existing members having priority. New members would need recommendations from two existing members to join, and the membership fee would remain £10. Members would enjoy an 80% discount on season tickets, a 90% discount on single tickets, and a 70% discount on merchandise like jerseys and scarves. They could also visit the team base, take photos with players, and so on.
For a time, Cambridge United memberships became extremely difficult to obtain.
Currently, after the celebrations concluded, the players all enjoyed their long-awaited vacation. However, Huang Hao, who was not only the Head Coach but also the team owner, clearly could not relax.
At this moment, sitting across from his desk were Li Jianqin and a seemingly aloof Eastern beauty, Ouyang Bing.
“Feifei, 70% off for jerseys and such is too cheap, we won’t make any profit,” Li Jianqin complained.
“Feifei, why don’t you go to China for OEM? Aren’t Nike and Adidas all made in China? It’s cheaper and can earn foreign exchange for the country.”
“That’s true, why didn’t I think of that? The day after tomorrow I’ll go to Yiwu and Jinjiang for inspection.”
Ouyang came from the famous University of Edinburgh in England. It's unclear how Li Jianqin managed to persuade her, but she became Cambridge United’s Financial Director.
When she first saw Cambridge United’s current financial statements, her delicate brows furrowed, and Huang Hao worried that this beauty would quit and run away the next day.
After Cambridge United distributed bonuses for all competitions this season to all players, only just over ten thousand pounds remained from the over six hundred thousand pounds raised through the fan foundation. After seeing the report, Huang Hao once again cursed Cambridge United’s former owner’s entire family in his mind.
Fortunately, both the Cambridge United Training Base and Abbey Stadium were club-owned properties; otherwise, the team might have problems playing matches next year.
“The club’s outstanding debts from before currently amount to £10 million, and the team’s salary expenditure this season is approximately £300,000, which is currently the team’s largest expense.”
“Additionally, the current staff salaries also require approximately £60,000.”
Ouyang Bing, as expected of a top student from the University of Edinburgh, rattled off almost all of the club’s current major financial figures without any hesitation.
“Moreover, the team has been promoted, so players’ contracts may need to be revised. If salaries aren’t increased, they might be poached by other teams.”
“Alright, perhaps the three of us should consider if we should just forgo our salaries.”
Huang Hao finished speaking and smiled at Ouyang Bing.
“Stop! Please! You are major shareholders of the team, but I am a penniless international student!”
Ouyang widened her beautiful eyes and replied seriously.
“Just kidding! Just kidding! How could we let our beautiful Miss Ouyang work for free!”
Li Jianqin quickly tried to appease Ouyang Bing while glaring fiercely at Huang Hao, his eyes as if he wanted to devour him.
“Hahaha, alright, alright, it seems that was just a pipe dream of mine.”
“Miss Ouyang, please rest assured. I’ll consider giving you Feifei’s Vice-Chairman position later. That way, you’ll also be an owner of Cambridge United.”
Huang Hao looked at the two serious people, trying to suppress a laugh. “No way, I’m just a nominal figure, and you want to take that away too!”
“Okay, no more jokes. Ouyang, can you see if we can allocate some funds from the account so I can strengthen Cambridge United’s squad this summer? After all, League Two is different from the amateur League.”
Huang Hao tentatively asked Ouyang.
“Absolutely not!” Ouyang shook her head like a rattle-drum, looking very cute.
“Currently, the team still has three short-term debt contracts to pay, and we also need to set aside three months’ worth of team salaries and bonus guarantees. If you don’t want to be blocked by players at the office door demanding payment, I advise you to withdraw that idea.” Seeing Ouyang Bing’s resolute stance, Huang Hao sighed. It seemed that the lean times would have to continue.
“How about the income side?”
Huang Hao asked Ouyang Bing again.
“The team’s currently fully controlled income is from the 45,000 membership fees. Based on current research, they can all be sold, which would be £450,000.”
“Currently, the club’s biggest income is from ticket sales. The average ticket price is now £6, and season tickets are about £200. Last season, we earned a total of £380,000 from ticket sales. Income from drinks, hot dogs, and other products sold during matches was £650,000; and the cost, security fees, was £500,000, so the profit in this area is approximately £530,000.”
“Income from jerseys and other merchandise was £800,000, and logistics costs were £400,000, so the profit in this area is £400,000.”
“Last season’s commercial sponsorship fees were £50,000, and TV broadcasting and funds from English Football Association amounted to £300,000, so the total profit from these sources is £1.28 million. Next season we will be playing in League Two, so income from tickets and other sources will see some growth. This season, English Football Association’s allocation for the last-placed team in League Two is £450,000, so I estimate our profit next season will be approximately £2 million.”
“Feifei, your promotion is quite mediocre. Hasn’t any domestic tycoon found us yet?”
Huang Hao knew his own financial situation was negligible, so he shifted the blame to Li Jianqin.
“My brother! Although we have over 200,000 followers on our domestic account, do you know that Cambridge United is currently in the fifth-tier League? If I hadn't insisted on arranging cameras, you wouldn't even be able to watch your matches domestically!”
Li Jianqin’s complaint was clearly valid. After all, brand investment definitely needs exposure, and relying solely on match highlights clearly couldn't compete with high-level League teams like Wolves or Birmingham.
“Alright, I will discuss this thoroughly with the coaching team recently to see how we can streamline the team’s squad and try to reduce the team’s salary expenditure.”
Huang Hao looked at the two helplessly. Clearly, the prestige of being promoted to League Two would not bring greater revenue to Cambridge United in the short term. They could only cut costs from personnel, reducing salary expenses.
Life without money is truly difficult!