Arsenal, the Premier League football club being stalked by a Russian businessman, said this morning that its move to the Emirates stadium combined with a more lucrative TV rights deal and the £16 million sale of Thierry Henry drove half year pre-tax profits up 55 per cent.

The football club reported pre-tax profits before exceptional items for the six months to November 30 of £20 million, up from £12.9 million a year before. Overall sales slipped 4 per cent to £97.7 million.

“We have had a very satisfactory start to the financial year driven by the new Premier League TV deals and the inaugural Emirates Cup tournament which have increased revenues in our core football business," Peter Hill-Wood, a non-executive chairman, said. He added that club was in an excellent position both on and off the field.

Arsenal moved to the Emirates for the start of the 2006-07 season as part of the club’s strategy to compete with the country’s other top teams in terms of gate receipts.

Over the first half of this season, Arsenal said that match day income had reached £41.4 million, up 9 per cent, from £38 million in the same period last year. The club’s pre-season Emirates Cup in July was one of the key factors behind the rise, attracting over 110,000 supports over the two days it was held.

The club has also benefited from putting on international fixtures at the Emirates, with the next international match, between Brazil and Sweden, scheduled for March. The stadium will hold its first music event in May, with Bruce Springsteen playing two dates.

Premier League domestic and overseas TV deals also boosted the clubs numbers, with broadcast income up £6.5 million, to £24.3 million.

The £16 million summer transfer of star player Thierry Henry to Barcelona meant player transfer profits more than doubled to £8.6 million and the club also said that it has now sold nearly 95 per cent of the 700 apartments being built as part of the re-development of its former ground at Highbury.

During the first half of the season, with the club under threat of takeovers by foreign billionaires, Arsenal’s board entered a “lock-down” agreement, whereby they cannot sell their shares before April 18, 2009. Shares can be sold to shareholders who are approved by the board. After that date and until October 18, 2012, the directors may only sell shares to each other.

Last week Red and White Holdings Ltd, an investment company set up to build a stake in Arsenal jointly owned by Russian businessman Alisher Usmanov and London-based investor Farhad Moshiri, increased to 24 per cent its stake in Arsenal Holdings, the company that owns the football club.