Celtic have announced annual pre-tax profits of £6.9m, which the club's chairman said is down to participation in the Champions League group stage.

Manager Brendan Rodgers took the team to the elite stages of European competition last season, bringing a cash windfall that bolstered the club's finances.

Celtic Plc said that group revenue for the year up to June 30, 2017 was up by 74.2% to £90.6m and that the profit before taxation of £6.9m was an increase from £0.5m for the previous year, when Celtic failed to reach the Champions League and finished bottom of their Europa League group.

The club also announced a 33.3% increase in operating expenses from the previous year and profit of £2.3m from players sales, down from £12.6m the previous year.

Investment in players rose from £8.8 in 2016 to £13.8m.

Chairman Ian Bankier said that success on the field, which included a clean sweep of domestic trophies and a season without a single defeat in Scottish competition, was down to Rodgers but also a stability in terms of finance and ownership at the club.

"These results, which declare sales revenue of £90.6m (2016: £52.0m) and a profit before taxation of £6.9m (2016: £0.5m), reflect the paramount importance to the company of participation in the group stages of the UEFA Champions League," Bankier said.

"The foundations for that success are based on consistency, stability and the implementation of a prudent long-term strategy that dictates that the company invests in its football operations, whilst maintaining a self-sustaining financial model."

The board considers that this strategy remains appropriate for Celtic plc and will continue to seek out and retain top talent on and off the field of play so as to deliver football success and, in turn, shareholder value.

"The board has been able to manage short-term challenges, and maintain the course it has set and reported on over the past several years, because there is consistency in the ownership, board and executive management of the company," Bankier added.

"These ingredients provide the stability that is so crucial for the successful operation of a football club at our level.

"On behalf of the board I warmly congratulate Brendan Rodgers, his staff and the players on a truly remarkable season during which we achieved an Invincible Treble, a sixth consecutive League Championship and consecutive qualifications for the group stages of the UEFA Champions League.

"Whilst the fundamentals that were in place at the club when he joined with his staff were strong, Brendan has been a remarkable catalyst."