The RFL have announced a profit of more than £1 million in their financial statements for 2021.
Across the calendar year the governing body recorded a profit of £1.008m and a return to a positive net asset position for the first time since 2016.
The profit is largely down to the sale of their Red Hall office for £380,000 as part of their relocation to Manchester’s Etihad Campus, as well as the deferment of its Covid recovery package.
The terms of the loan from the government were improved and extended last year, so a planned repayment of £900,000 in 2021 was deferred.
It is a third consecutive year of profit for the RFL after smaller profits of £75,000 and £25,000 respectively in 2019 and 2020 – a turnaround from combined losses of more than £2m across 2017-18.
The RFL say that their improved financial position – “achieved through effective forecasting, rigorous cost and financial management and a reshaping of the organisation and its cost base” – puts them in a strong position for the future.
“This provides a solid platform for the RFL ahead of realignment with Super League (Europe) to form RL Commercial – and with a view to the financial headwinds being faced by the national economy in the post-pandemic recovery, as well as specific challenges for Rugby League,” they said.
“Through strong management in a difficult landscape the work that has been completed to date should now position the RFL to meet these combined challenges and commitments.”
Their financial statements will be presented for approval by members at the RFL’s annual general meeting next month before being published.
