Davide Longo, the General Manager of Championship club Featherstone Rovers, has revealed significant increases to the club’s off-field business.
The club attracted over 2,500 fans to their recent Championship game against London Broncos, a 31% increase on the crowd for the same fixture last year.
Featherstone defeated London to consolidate their position in third place, four points ahead of nearest rivals Halifax, London and Batley.
“Our attendances have been rising and it was great to see a strong crowd at yesterday’s game,” Longo said.
“To have more than 2,500 people in for a game against a team who aren’t necessarily supported well away from home is a great sign for us.
“Huge credit must go to the Featherstone Rovers Foundation, who, through their local engagement strategy, are reaching out to more people than ever before.
“It was disappointing to see us to go down to Rochdale and Toulouse at home earlier in the season, but yesterday’s victory was a real statement from Jon Sharp and his players.
“We are heading into a challenging Easter period, particularly given the injuries we have picked up, though we can go into it with plenty of confidence.”
Business has also picked up from a retail perspective.
“Our financial reports, covering December to March, are extremely positive,” Longo said.
“Turnover is up throughout the business and we are very much moving in the right direction.
“Retail-wise, we have already turned over more than we did for the entirety of last season and we are in a strong commercial position, with a huge announcement coming up in the next 10 days.”