Queens Park Rangers, the Premier League football club controlled by AirAsia Bhd chief executive officer Tony Fernandes, said shareholders wrote off 60 million pounds (RM333.96 million) they loaned to the team.

The move strengthens QPR’s balance sheet and shows the “long-term support” of the shareholders, the London club said in a statement on its website.

QPR is 17th in the Premier League after 26 of 38 matches, above the three-team relegation zone on goal difference.

The club had a loss of 9.8 million pounds for the year ended May 2014, when it dropped out of the Premier League, even after reducing player costs by 22 million pounds. It was promoted back to the top division in May after beating Derby County in a playoff.

“The club is moving in the right direction and on track with its mid-term and long-term business plans,” QPR said in the statement, citing continued cost cutting and rising Premier League television revenue.

- Bloomberg