BY CHRIS JONES
LEEDS and St Helens are the first two Super League clubs to reveal their 2023 financial results and in both cases the clubs have registered losses on an increasing scale.
The Rhinos have reported an operating loss of £2,311,193 for the year ended 31 October 2023 on a turnover that rose slightly to £11,591,516 from £11,537,890 the previous year. But the scale of the club’s losses grew from £1,441,178 a year earlier.
The club’s cash reserves on 31 October fell to £230,552 from £343,926 a year earlier, while shareholder funds fell to £11,455,103 from £12,955,876 in 2022.
The club blamed its increased losses on a slight fall in commercial, ticketing and membership revenues, a decline in central funding from £1,934,193 to £1,586,339, a 42 percent increase in utilities costs and “several significant one-off repairs and maintenance costs.”
That is despite its average attendance increasing by almost 1,000 spectators, from 12,866 in 2022 to 13,806 in 2023, even though the club didn’t make the play-offs last year.
The annual report appears to reveal that the club paid transfer fees of £287,500 in signing new players in 2023, principally Brodie Croft and Andy Ackers from Salford.
The number of employees rose from 128 to 173, reflecting their women’s squad being awarded professional contracts. Spending on wages and salaries, including social security and pension costs, rose to £5,439,353 from £5,240,491 a year earlier.
St Helens have reported an operating loss of £2,205,615 for the year ended 31 October 2023, compared to a loss of £1,218,292 in 2022.
Saints’ turnover fell to £9,095,180 compared to £9,275,489 in 2022 while the club’s cash holdings on 31 October fell to £153,493 from £731,941 a year earlier and shareholder funds fell to £2,234,791 from £2,998,745 in 2022.
The club reports that its costs increased by £807,000 compared to a year earlier, while the total number of playing, coaching and general staff increased to 169 from 153.
Spending on wages and salaries, including social security and pension costs, fell to £5,623,749 from £5,645,342 the previous year.
One point of difference between the two clubs is that St Helens’ directors are not remunerated, while the Leeds directors received aggregate remuneration of £439,600.
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