New Zealand Rugby post £8.7m loss months after Ineos saga
New Zealand Rugby has posted a third consecutive loss despite the firm – which encompasses the All Blacks – achieving record income.
A NZ$19.5m (£8.7m) loss for 2024 follows losses of NZ$8.9m (£4m) and NZ$47m (£21m) in 2023 and 2022 respectively.
While nowhere near the £34.3m loss at England’s Rugby Football Union recently, the 2024 report comes just months after New Zealand Rugby launched a legal challenge against Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos over an early sponsorship termination.
“While the organisation came close to break-even operationally, foreign exchange hedging on sponsorship revenue; and investment into revenue growth initiatives through New Zealand Rugby Commercial (NZRC) resulted in a $19.5m net deficit,” a statement read.
New Zealand Rugby’s commercial arm secured a US$120m investment from US private equity firm Silver Lake in 2022, which was increased from 5.7 per cent to 7.5 per cent in 2023.
New Zealand Rugby losses
The losses come despite the men’s All Blacks being one of the most recognisable brands in World Rugby, if not sport, and a number of commercial agreements ongoing with the likes of Adidas and Altrad. Toyota will replace Ineos on the training kits and it is hoped this deal would level out and recap any losses from the Ineos agreement falling through.
And they come despite perceived interest in rugby. New Zealand Rugby Commercial chief executive Craig Fenton last year stated that he thinks “ there are about one billion people in the world who in some form follow rugby”.
“Achieving a new high watermark of $285m income, healthy commercial revenue streams in what is a difficult international operating environment, and reinvesting into the game at all levels, are grounds for optimism,” said New Zealand Rugby chairman David Kirk.
“NZR retains an incredibly strong balance sheet which is vital for rugby in New Zealand and its ability to weather any major shocks.”
The statement, released at NZR’s AGM, states that the NZ$19.5m is partly down to a NZ$38m investment in “commercial revenue growth opportunities” including NZ$11.7m in their own content platform, NZR+.