STEPHEN WILD, Swinton Lions’ chief executive, has revealed that it costs over £10,000 a week just to keep the Championship club running.
In his New Year address, Wild referenced a number of focal points, including the increase in costs following the reduction of £150,000 in central funding as opposed to two years ago.
Wild said: “The challenges of running a semi-professional Rugby League club at Championship level in this day and age are immense.
“I’ve already touched on the dramatic reduction in central funding, which leaves us £150,000 short of what we received in 2021. In the meantime, we have not only won promotion from League One, but followed this up with a tenth place finish in the Championship in 2023.
“In the same period costs have risen sharply, particularly player costs, and it is a constant daily challenge for the Board to meet this significant financial challenge. It will probably surprise you to learn that on average, over the course of a full year, it costs in excess of £10,000 PER WEEK to meet our obligations and maintain our current status.
“We aren’t just a Rugby League club, we are decent sized business in every respect, playing in a highly regulated sport, with all the challenges of a regular business aside from our Rugby League playing activities.
“With such eye-watering numbers to contend with you’ll fully understand why we value our Supporters Trust, the Pridebuilder scheme, our season ticket holders and our regular supporters. But if only we could double our gates we would be in an entirely different place!”
Not only would more supporters equal more gates, it would also help tick the fandom box in IMG’s five pillars.
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