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'There's no financial crisis here... it's not in as bad a situation as I expected it to be'
Chief executive Bill Sweeney has insisted there isn’t a financial crisis affecting at the RFU. Former chief executive Steve Brown lost his job over hefty cuts that led to scores of job losses.
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However, the former British Olympic Association (BOA) chief, who joined the RFU in February in a bid to reverse serious financial troubles suffered by the English game’s governing body, is adamant there isn’t a crisis that will damage the union’s long-term health.
“There’s no financial crisis here,” he insisted. “The similarities with the BOA are there, it’s a cyclical business. You’d expect to have a loss-making year in the year coming up. It’s not a financial crisis.
“The business model at the RFU is inherently very healthy, we generate a lot of cash, a lot of revenue and if you keep your costs in control there’s no reason why that should be a fragile business plan. So it’s inherently strong. Stabilising the financial situation is a key priority.
“It’s not in as bad a situation as perhaps I would have expected it to be quite frankly, having read a number of things coming in. The team here has done a really good job over the last 18 months already, taking quite a bit of cost out of the operation.”
Brown, who exited last November, had only been in the role for 15 months. The RFU posted losses of £30.9m for the last financial year, as well as having made numerous redundancies in a cost-cutting exercise.
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By March it was feared that the England sevens programme could be disbanded as a cost-cutting measure as Twickenham began looking at ways to save £20million in the areas of the professional and community games and overheads across the next four years. Of that sum, cuts of at least £5 million need to be made for the 2019-20 financial year.
I’ve been compiling the @Champrugby Dream Team since 2003, all based on coaches votes. It’s a unique model for RU and one that has proved very popular and helps promote the League and its players. Sadly RFU cutbacks dictate that they are no longer in a position to pay a small fee
— Jon Newcombe (@RugbyTimes) March 11, 2019
An RFU spokeswoman said at the time: “We have been very clear for some time that we need to cut costs in 2019-2020 as our revenues have not risen in line with our original forecasts.
“We have kept the game informed – and this is also outlined in our annual report. We are currently consulting with the game on how best to adjust costs. There are a broad range of options under discussion across the professional game, the community game, and our general overheads.
“Any budget cuts in 2019/2020 come after years of record investment in the professional and community game.”
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WATCH: How RugbyPass reported Bill Sweeney’s appointment by the RFU
