Promoted cricket club improves financial performance
Newly-promoted Worcestershire County Cricket Club has played down its healthy-looking financial scorecard, highlighting the big contribution from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in racking up a surplus.
The cricket club, whose parent company is an industrial and provident society, increased its post-tax surplus by 5% to £449,426 in 2017.
However the club said “the underlying position remains loss making” because both 2016 and 2017’s results were “flattered” by additional distributions of £500,000 from the ECB.
Matt Rawnsley, Worcestershire CCC (Source: wccc.co.uk)
“Therefore the underlying improvements have been substantial. There, of course, remains challenges ahead, but the platform or legacy created from former CEO Tom Scott is a strong and improving one.”
Matt Rawnsley, who made 100 appearances as a left-arm spinner for the county before starting his business career in 2003, started as the club’s chief executive last week.
He said: “There have been some changes and Tom Scott has been very busy the last couple of years in setting up the foundations of what I can do next which I’m very grateful for.
“We are approaching a very positive time, we’ve got some good momentum around the commercial side of the business and also the cricketing side as well.
“It’s about taking that to the next level. That is my job.”
In 2017 the club benefitted from match receipts increasing by nearly half to £458,000, helped by a home semi-final against Surrey in the Royal London One-Day Cup and a successful year on the field.
