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Daily Maverick
a day ago
- Business
- Daily Maverick
Saru declares significant loss in 2024 financial report – but 2025 outlook positive
Despite a large deficit, the South African Rugby Union is optimistic about the short-to-medium-term future. The South African Rugby Union (Saru) reported a R93-million loss for the 2024 financial year, which was expected and forecast, despite record earnings, its latest financial statements reveal. On the up side, new sponsorships and becoming a full shareholder of the United Rugby Championship (URC) from next month, has led to a bold prediction of a R100-million surplus in the current financial year. Summary 2024 financial year (reported) Loss: R93-million (expected and already offset in early 2025) Commercial revenue: R1.552-billion (up from R1.44-billion in 2023) Total income (including grants): R1.76-billion World Rugby grant: R186-million Merchandising: Doubled from R30-million to R62-million Expenses: R1.871-billion (up 2.9% from R1.816-billion) World Rugby events: R133-million Player image rights: R148-million (+R24-million) Private equity transaction costs: R13-million URC/northern hemisphere franchises: R446-million National teams including Springboks: R433-million (-R27m from 2023) 2025 outlook Forecast revenue: Above R2-billion Projected surplus: R100-million Drivers: New sponsorships Full URC membership Continued commercial growth According to the financial report, the R93-million deficit had already 'been wiped out' over the first six months of 2025. Overall, in 2024, group commercial revenues exceeded R1.5-billion for the first time (R1.552-billion), up from R1.44-billion in 2023. Total income with the addition of grants (principally from World Rugby of R186-million) took total income to R1.76-billion. Revenues for 2025 are forecast to exceed R2-billion. The 7.8% increase in revenues was attributable to increased broadcast revenues in a non-Rugby World Cup year, competition sponsorships and a strong performance in merchandising receipts, which more than doubled from R30-million to R62-million. Expenses increased from R1.816-billion to R1.871-billion. The 2.9% increase was put down to investment in hosting three World Rugby tournaments (R133-million), a R24-million increase in player image rights (to R148-million), and the costs associated with the mooted private equity transaction (R13-million). Total expenditure attributable to the northern hemisphere international franchise competition was R446-million, while Saru was still able to make a full distribution to member unions. Spending on the No 1 world-ranked team, the Springboks, and other national teams was R433-million, a reduction of R27-million on the Rugby World Cup-winning year of 2023 (R460-million). 'Reporting a loss can never be desirable, but the irony is that we are more than satisfied with our position,' said Saru CEO Rian 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.' European costs Saru's biggest accumulated cost over the past eight years has been paying to participate in URC (and the Pro14 competition before that). The cost of securing South Africa's place in northern hemisphere rugby, which was accelerated by the collapse of Super Rugby in 2020, has been R2.2-billion. According to the finance notes, Saru currently pays R392-million annually for top club teams to compete in URC and European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). Without this contribution, the Bulls, Cheetahs, Lions, Sharks and Stormers would have no international competition. Another R54-million is paid to travel and other associated costs for the teams. Saru also paid R347-million to member unions (the 15 provinces) to ensure their existence. Saru president Mark Alexander highlighted a period of significant challenges and growth for the organisation. Despite the unsuccessful private equity transaction, it elevated Saru's profile and led to the exploration of alternative commercial initiatives, including a new commercial app and digital platform to diversify revenue streams. The Saru president acknowledged a financial loss for the period, but emphasised that the R2.2-billion investment was made to secure future participation and full membership in the URC and EPCR by the end of June 2025. He also noted that budgets for 2025-2027 had been secured, ensuring financial stability. Plans include digital transformation and leveraging partnerships for growth beyond 2028. Alexander also praised the Springboks' continued world-class performance, ranking No 1 in 2023 and 2024. 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 in 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.' DM
IOL News
a day ago
- Business
- IOL News
SA Rugby in the pound seats as international rivals struggle to make ends meet
Saru CEO Rian Oberholzer was happy to report a R100m profit for the union this week. Photo: Supplied Image: Supplied South African rugby is set to buck the global trend and report a profit of more than R100 million for 2025, clearing 2024's losses and ensuring the 15 member unions receive their full funding, while support for the Springboks and all national teams continues unchecked. This good news emerged from the annual meeting of the South African Rugby Union (SARU) in Cape Town on Thursday. Last year, South African rugby recorded a loss of R93 million due to its investment in northern hemisphere rugby competitions, but SA Rugby has already wiped out that deficit with a strong start to 2025. This is in contrast to many rival countries, who are under severe financial pressure. Other international federations have lost as much as R913 million, with five other Tier One nations reporting losses of between R588 million and R181 million. The next 'best' performance after South Africa's was a loss of R126 million, members at the meeting were told. SA Rugby's continued investment into membership of northern hemisphere competitions led to a group loss in 2024, but the organisation had already wiped out that deficit with a strong start to 2025 - more here: 👍 — Springboks (@Springboks) June 5, 2025 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. 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. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad loading Rian Oberholzer, CEO of SA Rugby, said that participation in the United Rugby Championship (URC) and European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR) came at a net cost of R124 million 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 fulfil 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 the URC and EPCR. '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.'
The Citizen
a day 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.
The South African
4 days ago
- Sport
- The South African
When do Springbok Rugby Championship tickets go on sale?
The Springboks' season is nearly upon us, with tickets having already been snapped up for the season-opener against the Barbarians on 28 June, as well as the July Tests against Italy and Georgia in July. It's worth remembering that tickets for the Springboks' home matches in their defence of the Rugby Championship title will soon go on sale, on Friday 13 June. The start to the Bok season not only represents an opportunity to see the back-to-back World Champions in local action but also launches a year in which the Springboks will be fighting to defend their No. 1 world ranking to secure the most favourable draw for Rugby World Cup 2027. Rian Oberholzer, CEO of SA Rugby, said: 'This is more than just the start of the season, it's a chance for South Africans to once again unite behind a team that brings pride to the nation in a critical year for World Cup preparation. 'We had an amazing 2024 and we're looking forward to seeing South Africans fill stadiums with passionate supporters, enjoying the experience as a memorable kick-off to a year filled with big challenges and even bigger opportunities.' 28 June: vs Barbarians, DHL Stadium, Cape Town. Kick off: 17:05. 5 July: vs Italy, Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria. Kick off: 17:10. 12 July: vs Italy, Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Gqeberha. Kick off: 17:10. 19 July: vs Georgia, Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit. Kick off: 17:10. 16 August: vs Australia, Ellis Park, Johannesburg. Kick off: 17:10. 23 August: vs Australia, DHL Stadium, Cape Town. Kick off: 17:10. 6 September: vs New Zealand, Auckland. Kick off: 09:05. 13 September: vs New Zealand, Wellington. Kick off: 09:05. 27 September: vs Argentina, Kings Park, Durban. Kick off: 17:10. 4 October: vs Argentina, London. Kick off: 15:00. 8 November: vs France, Paris. Kick off: TBD. 15 November: vs Italy, Turin. Kick off: TBD. 22 November: vs Ireland, Dublin. Kick off: 19:40. 29 November: vs Wales, Cardiff. Kick off: 17:10. *SA Rugby are working on adding two more Tests for the Springboks, likely to be against Japan and Portug Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 0211. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news. Meanwhile, here is an important reminder on ticket sales for the Springbok men's game against Argentina in the Rugby Championship at Twickenham in October. Ticket sales Tickets are on sale via and England Rugby, starting from just £55* for adults and £28* for Under-16s. (*booking fees apply)
The South African
29-05-2025
- Business
- The South African
Springboks set to gain? Rugby CEO calls out SA's club contingent
SA Rugby CEO Rian Oberholzer believes the proposed Club World Cup will 'force SA teams to take the Champions Cup seriously.' South Africa's Sharks, Bulls and Stormers have been widely accused of prioritising the United Rugby Championship (URC) over the Champions Cup, often opting to rest several starters when the latter occurs. Neither of the three, which all ended with five points, qualified for the Champions Cup knockout rounds. Meanwhile, each outfit has made it through to the URC quarter-finals, pipping fifth, third, and second in the standings. The SA Rugby chief is a fan of the Club World Cup, believing it to be an avenue to bridging the competitive gap between northern and southern hemisphere clubs. But a lot of work remains to make it official. 'The financial aspect is something that still needs to be figured out,' the SA Rugby boss revealed. 'At this stage, only projections have been made, but if accurate, the Club World Cup could be financially beneficial.' 'Officially, no structures have been put in place yet, and no broadcasting rights or sponsorships have been sold. So the financial impact will only be determined in the future.' 'The announcement is somewhat premature, with a lot of detail outstanding, and we don't have all the answers yet.' Meanwhile, Champions Cup chairman Dominic McKay, said, 'We've had some great discussions throughout the weekend talking about the future of our sport and particularly some exciting projects that relate to EPCR.' 'This is something we've spoken about at EPCR for the last two or three years – we've been trying to work our way through this project to see if we can deliver it.' 'And over the last few days we've had great meetings with our Board, great meetings with our General Assembly, who represent the three leagues and stakeholders from seven unions, and everyone is unanimous about wanting to deliver a World Club Cup through EPCR.' Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
