English Rugby
RFU announces £6.3m loss
ESPN Staff
November 13, 2012
A general view of the RFU offices, November 7, 2009
The RFU suffered a loss in the past financial year © Getty Images
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The Rugby Football Union has announced a loss of £6.3m for the past financial year which ended on June 30, 2012.

The organisation has played down the loss and claimed that it was "anticipated and planned for". The past financial year coincided with the 2011 World Cup and as a result, it meant that England played fewer home matches. Due to the Six Nations calendar, they also played just two matches at Twickenham and travelled for the other three.

RFU CEO Ian Ritchie was quick to highlight the positives despite the loss. "The Rugby Football Union is a dynamic, credible business underpinning the whole game in England. We have both solid financial foundations and security for many years to come and plan our finances on a four-year Rugby World Cup cycle, with each World Cup year also bringing only two home Six Nations matches to Twickenham.

"In this way we continue funding every level of the game in fallow years thanks to the profits we build up over the other three. There are many positives in the current accounts and much to look forward to as we head towards hosting Rugby World Cup 2015, especially as 2012/13 already promises record group turnover, contribution and investment in the game."

And chief financial officer Stephen Brown also pointed towards the organisation paying off part of the loan they took to build the South Stand at Twickenham.

"This was an excellent year in terms of underlying business performance with above plan revenues from our two Twickenham Six Nations matches, and record 103,000 weekend attendances and sales at the London Sevens," Brown said. "During the year we repaid £5m of our bank loan which originally financed the stadium's South Stand and we will have repaid the entire debt by the end of the current financial year.

"We also provided £5.2m of capital expenditure to kick start the £76m stadium refurbishment project and for the first time we are also accounting for the initial costs of hosting Rugby World Cup 2015. Despite the anticipated loss, we have a significant asset base and very secure revenue streams, combined with substantial cash inflows and reserves which enable us to comfortably meet all of our ongoing responsibilities."

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