Latest news with #R588m
The Citizen
3 days ago
- Business
- The Citizen
SA Rugby's financial future looking rosy
The South African Rugby Union (Saru) is set to buck the global trend and report a profit of more than R100m for 2025. South African rugby's continued investment in membership of northern hemisphere rugby competitions led to a R93m group loss in 2024, but the organisation had already wiped out that deficit with a strong start to 2025, the annual meeting of Saru was told in Cape Town today. Saru's reported profit in 2025 would ensure the 15 member unions receive their full funding, while support of the Springboks and all national teams would continue unchecked. In the last reporting cycle, other international federations had lost as much as R913m, with five other tier-one nations reporting losses of between R588m and R181m. The next 'best' performance after South Africa's was a loss of R126m, members were told. SA Rugby CEO Rian Oberholzer said that the investment in participation in the Vodacom URC and European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR) had come at a net cost of R124m in 2024. 'We have been investing in the long-term future of South African rugby to become full members of the URC for the best part of eight years,' said Oberholzer. 'It has come at a significant cost to the sport but there is no doubt that it has been the right thing to do. 'Once we fulfill certain membership obligations this year, we will begin to reap the on and off field rewards of such investment. 'If we had not undertaken this journey, we would have been reduced to playing only domestic competitions, which would have had catastrophic high performance as well as financial ramifications for rugby in South Africa. 'It has been a tough financial road, but we have annually outperformed our global peers since the pandemic, while taking on the unusual cost of our investment into URC and EPCR.' Oberholzer said the turnaround in 2025 was being achieved by a reformatting of SA Rugby's offering to partners, featuring enhanced rights at enhanced values, as well as the creation of a new commercial delivery model. Overall, in 2024, group commercial revenues exceeded R1.5b for the first time (R1.552b), up from R1.440b in 2023. Total income with the addition of grants (principally from World Rugby of R186m) took total income to R1.76b. Revenues for 2025 are forecast to exceed R2b. The 7.8% increase in revenues was attributable to increased broadcast revenues in a non-world cup year, competition sponsorships and a strong performance in merchandising receipts which more than doubled from R30m to R62m. Expenses increased from R1.816b to R1.871b. The 2.9% increase was put down to investment in hosting three World Rugby tournaments (R133m), a R24m increase in player image rights (to R148m) and the costs associated with the mooted private equity transaction (R13m). Total expenditure attributable to the northern hemisphere international franchise competition was R446m while SA Rugby was still able to make a full distribution to member unions. Spending on the No 1-ranked Springboks, and other national teams, was R433m, a reduction of R27m on the world cup winning year of 2023 (R460m). 'Reporting a loss can never be desirable but the irony is that we are more than satisfied with our position,' said Oberholzer. 'We had budgeted for a loss in 2024 in the expectation that the members would approve the private equity transaction that they had sought, releasing funds to cover the deficit. 'When that did not happen, we continued with our planned commercial reset, and other revenue generation plans, which have borne fruit. We are in the very rare position among our international peers of continuing to be debt-free and confident of posting a surplus in 2025.' ALSO: SA Rugby defends Bok ticket prices Oberholzer said the financial outlook beyond next year was equally healthy with strong revenues forecast for 2026 with new competition formats in the pipeline. 'The income that SA Rugby generates all goes back into supporting the growth and promotion of rugby in the country,' he said. 'It allows us to fund Springbok campaigns, expand women's rugby programmes and fuel our other national teams. It pays for our members' activities in their communities, as well as their professional teams. It underwrites our rugby safety programme BokSmart; supports referee and coaching development and our age group competitions, as well as development programmes and allows us turn on sell-out Test match entertainment and our domestic competitions. 'Ultimately, every rand that we earn goes into powering the game in some shape or form and after a challenging 2024 we have a good news story to tell our South African rugby community as we look ahead.' The post SA Rugby's financial future looking rosy appeared first on SA Rugby magazine. Breaking news at your fingertips… Follow Caxton Network News on Facebook and join our WhatsApp channel. Nuus wat saakmaak. Volg Caxton Netwerk-nuus op Facebook en sluit aan by ons WhatsApp-kanaal.
IOL News
20-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Former MKP leader, officials challenge dismissals over R588m Covid-19 hospital renovations
Former Gauteng premier David Makhura at the opening of AngloGold Ashanti Hospital in Carletonville. Officials involved in the procurement of renovations of the facility, that skyrocketed from R50 million to R588m, are now challenging their dismissals. Image: Supplied FORMER uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) secretary-general Dr. Sifiso Maseko and several other senior Gauteng provincial government officials are challenging their dismissals for renovations to a Covid-19 hospital, where costs ballooned from R50 million to R588m. Maseko, who was the provincial department of health's chief director responsible for infrastructure management, was asked to return to work from suspension in October last year following the conclusion of his disciplinary hearing and while awaiting its findings. In February, the provincial government announced that five of the nine officials, who were suspended in 2022 facing charges of financial misconduct and gross financial misconduct, had been dismissed and two received written warnings, one was acquitted while another could not be subjected to disciplinary action after leaving the public service. They were held responsible for the costs of the skyrocketing project, from the initial estimate of R50m to R588m, without having received approval from the provincial health department. The action taken against the officials followed Special Investigation Unit (SIU) recommendations that premier Panyaza Lesufi's office institute disciplinary action against them over irregularities in the awarding of contracts for the refurbishment of the Western Deep Levels Hospital (also known as the AngloGold Ashanti Hospital) in Carletonville on Gauteng's West Rand - at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. According to the SIU, a dozen professional service providers and contractors appointed for the project were not on the departments' approved panel and were telephonically advised of their appointments but overcharged the provincial government. Maseko is now among the four officials challenging their dismissals alongside Mokhele Raseboka, Sipho Makhumisani and Trevor Tabane, who were employed by the Gauteng department of infrastructure development. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. 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Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ The former MKP leader has hauled the provincial department of health before the Public Health and Social Development Sectoral Bargaining Council (PHSDSBC), where the provincial department of health wanted the matter to be heard as a stated case. A stated case is arbitration without the need for a formal hearing or presentation of evidence and involves parties agreeing on specific relevant facts stating legal questions at issue. Parties then submit their written arguments and submissions for consideration and a decision is made based solely on the agreed facts and the legal arguments presented in the submissions. Both departments also wanted an order for the joint and consolidated arbitration disputes to be dealt with by way of a stated case to save time and money since it will be repetition of the same facts and testimonies about the same or similar acts of misconduct. Maseko objected to the matter being heard as a stated case as he felt it would be prejudicial to him. He also wanted his application to be consolidated with the one brought by Raseboka, Makhumisani and Tabane at the General Public Service Sector Bargaining Council. Maseko told the PHSDSBC that all four affected employees seek relief based on the same cause of action arising from a joint disciplinary enquiry presided by the same presiding officer. PHSDSBC commissioner Advocate Ronnie Bracks declined to consolidate the disputes on May 5, saying the bargaining council did not have the jurisdiction to do so. Bracks also declined the provincial health department's bid to have the matter heard by way of a stated case but granted application for the appointment of a senior commissioner. On Tuesday, Maseko said no date has been set for hearing the matter. Maseko was the MKP secretary-general between June and October last year, when he resigned and was replaced by former EFF deputy president Floyd Shivambu.
