Yorkshire CCC fans help soften financial blow at Headingley

MARK ARTHUR has paid tribute to the Yorkshire members after revealing that 85 per cent of them answered the club’s plea to donate their fees for the 2020 season, saving the club in the region of £500,000.

The Yorkshire chief executive has praised the generosity and understanding of the club’s loyal followers, which has helped to turn the worst-case prediction of a £2m loss of income at the start of the pandemic into what could be a £200,000 deficit for the year at worst.

Arthur hailed “an amazing effort by everybody involved in Yorkshire cricket”, its staff and supporters, for pulling together to mitigate what had threatened to be a crippling shortfall after a bumper 2019 in which Yorkshire recorded a record operating profit of £6.5m on the back of their World Cup games and the Ben Stokes-inspired Headingley Ashes triumph.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

However, he warned that next year could potentially hit Yorkshire even harder amid ongoing uncertainty around when spectators will be allowed back into grounds, with the club set to host a money-spinning Test match between England and India, and he fears that county cricket in general may struggle to withstand another season behind closed doors and that the sport is potentially “in serious financial trouble if we don’t return to normal by at least halfway through next season”.

Yorkshire chief executive Mark Arthur. Picture: SWpix.comYorkshire chief executive Mark Arthur. Picture: SWpix.com
Yorkshire chief executive Mark Arthur. Picture: SWpix.com

Speaking to The Yorkshire Post, Arthur said that he was immensely grateful to the Yorkshire members for playing their part in what remains an extremely challenging climate.

“Our members and supporters have been absolutely amazing,” said Arthur, who made his appeal to the members at the start of last month.

“For about 85 per cent of them to have donated their memberships this year is an outstanding contribution and dedication to their cricket club.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Because they’ve turned it into donations it means that we can claim back the VAT, and thanks to their efforts it means that there’s a substantial amount of money that we now don’t have to find for this year. I was hoping for about a 70 per cent take-up, so to get 85 per cent is just incredible.”

That Yorkshire have closed the financial gap so dramatically is thanks also to money distributed to the counties by the ECB, the impact of the government’s furlough scheme and the support of sponsors.

The Yorkshire staff also took voluntary wage deductions, with some of those staff and also the players now back on furlough until the scheme finishes at the end of October.

Yorkshire are running “a very small” redundancy programme; the club has a low headcount in any case, with 49 admin and cricketing support staff.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“The staff all made voluntary contributions to have their wages docked earlier in the year – one of a number of factors that has meant that the (financial) result is more palatable,” said Arthur.

“It’s been good housekeeping too and just an amazing effort by everybody involved in Yorkshire cricket.

“But what we don’t know about, of course, is next year, and next year will undoubtedly, I think, be worse.

“Next year we were due to make more money because this year we didn’t have a Test match, so our expectation levels, our forecasts, if you like, for this year weren’t so great as they would be for next year, and therefore the loss isn’t so great either.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

With the India schedule for 2021 yet to be confirmed (and not due to be until after the ongoing Indian Premier League season), Yorkshire have been unable to start selling tickets for the Headingley Test – a process that would normally have begun at the beginning of this month.

This presents cash flow difficulties at a time when they are also facing many months without money from conferencing, banqueting and events, especially in the build-up to Christmas.

The national picture is equally uncertain with Tom Harrison, the England and Wales Cricket Board chief executive, recently admitting that the game will lose over £100m this summer – a figure that could rise to over £200m next year.

The return of crowds remains essential to the sport’s financial health, with Arthur adamant that counties badly need the presence of spectators.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“It would be wrong for me to comment on the state of other counties at the moment, but I do believe that the game as a whole will be in serious financial trouble if we don’t return to normal by at least halfway through next season,” he added.

“We will definitely need full crowds by the start of the international season, but at the moment we don’t know whether crowds will be allowed into grounds next year or whether there’ll be partial crowds.

“Nobody knows the answer to that, and I’m sure that all the counties are doing risk assessments on the potential impact of 2021. Fundamentally we are working to a five-year plan with the ECB and we’ve got a five-year forecast that we have to present to our creditors, and if there are any shortfalls in 2021 then we’re going to have to make those up either through improved revenue streams in 2022/2023/2024 or by reducing costs and overheads in those years.

“The bottom line is that you can deal with certainty, but it’s very difficult to deal with uncertainty.”

Support The Yorkshire Post and become a subscriber today.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Your subscription will help us to continue to bring quality news to the people of Yorkshire. In return, you’ll see fewer ads on site, get free access to our app and receive exclusive members-only offers.

So, please - if you can - pay for our work. Just £5 per month is the starting point. If you think that which we are trying to achieve is worth more, you can pay us what you think we are worth. By doing so, you will be investing in something that is becoming increasingly rare. Independent journalism that cares less about right and left and more about right and wrong. Journalism you can trust.

Thank you, James Mitchinson. Editor

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.