Rugby AU publishes 2019 annual report

Thu, Jun 25, 2020, 12:27 AM
Beth Newman
by Beth Newman
Rugby Australia has released its annual report. Photo: Getty Images
Rugby Australia has released its annual report. Photo: Getty Images

Rugby Australia published its annual report on Wednesday, after the official conclusion of its annual general meeting.

The report was initially planned to be released on March 30, after the scheduled annual general meeting, but at the time, auditor KPMG was unable to sign off on the organisation's accounts.

That was in the wake of the coronavirus-forced shutdown of Super Rugby and the uncertainty about income for the years ahead.

The AGM was adjourned in March and completed on Wednesday night, with the report released to the public afterwards.

A provisional $9.4 million loss reported in March was also broken down in the report, with key decreases in expected areas such as Test match revenue and broadcast, with fewer home Tests.

Since March, Rugby Australia has undergone a wide range of cost-cutting measures including asking players and staff to take significant pay cuts and making 47 full-time employees redundant.

In the report, Rugby Australia detailed two loans that had been secured after the reporting date that helped to shore up its short-term financial future. 

World Rugby granted Rugby AU a $14.2 million advance, $4.7 million of which was provided in May with the remainder to be provided "at a date agreed upon by December 31 2020".

Rugby Australia has also struck an arrangement for a $6.9 million loan from HSBC, repayable by June 2022.

Broadcast revenue from the Rugby World Cup is not negotiated by national unions, rather going to World Rugby in the first instance, reducing annual income in that space.

The most significant increase in expenditure came in player costs, which rose by $3.7 million in 2019.

That rise, the report states, was in part due to settlement costs with Israel Folau, increased player payments in a World Cup year, for Sevens players for Olympic qualification and more match payments for Wallaroos in an expanded Test calendar.

Professional services and fees also rose significantly, to the tune of $2.4 million, due to legal costs associated with the Folau case as well as external communications and media rights consultants.

In line with a reduction in home Tests, operations spending was down $2.5 million on 2018 while marketing and media spend increased by $1.1 million.

Sponsorship revenue increased in 2019, by $4.8 million, to $33 million with additional government support for Wallabies and Wallaroos Tests as well as the acquisition of Japanese sponsor Odakyu.

Read the full annual report here.

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