Job search
Job Search
Latest news
More news: (showing 1 - 20 of 13740)           
UK only International

DCMS select committee told: major sports facing £700m loss from pandemic

By Tom Walker    06 May 2020
RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney said it would take up to six years 'to get rugby back fully on its feet' / Shutterstock/Mitch Gunn

Leaders of major English sports have told MPs that they are set to lose more than £700m between them over the next 12 months.

Appearing in front of the digital, culture, media and sport (DCMS) select committee, chiefs from the English Football League (EFL), the Rugby Football Union (RFU) and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said the COVID-19 shutdown is having a devastating effect on the finances of elite sport.

Rick Parry, chair of EFL, said clubs in the three divisions of the league were heading towards "a financial hole of £200m by the end of September".

Saying that the EFL would need a "proper reset post-Covid", with clubs currently "stacking up creditors", Parry also said it would be "difficult to answer" how many might go out of business.

Tom Harrison, chief executive of ECB, went even further, saying that the future of cricket "is in danger" and that the sport would require a significant and collaborative effort to protect it.

"In a worst-case scenario for which it is prudent to model, the cost of losing the entire cricket season is more than £380m of lost income," he said.

Meanwhile, RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney said it would take up to six years "to get rugby back fully on its feet”.

Sweeney estimated that the RFU has already lost around £15m, which would become £122m if there are no matches at Twickenham – the national stadium which it owns – during 2020.

The DCMS Select Committee also heard from Tim Hollingsworth, CEO of grassroots body Sport England and from Dame Katherine Grainger, chair of high-performance body UK Sport.

Hollingsworth said the £20m Community Emergency Fund – part of a larger £195m funding package to help grassroots organisations through the pandemic – was already oversubscribed.

“We would expect 4,000 applications in a year," he said. "Over the last five weeks, we have had 7,500 applications.

“That tells the story of how clubs are in need of that support.”

Meanwhile, UK Sport's Dame Katherine said the organisation was looking for an “early and exceptional rollover” of money from the government, in order to protect national governing bodies of sport.

She said the rollover would “reassure all Olympic and Paralympic sports that funding is in place”.

The current funding cycle ends in March 2021, but Grainger is looking for a rollover until March 2022 due to the Tokyo Olympic Games being moved from June 2020 to June 2021.

• The DCMS Select Committee session is available to watch in its entirety on the Parliament Live service. To access the footage, click here.

Rugby  football  cricket  COVID-19  Sport England  UK Sport 
Sign up for FREE ezines
Related news
Sports jobs

Duty Manager

The Pickaquoy Centre
Salary: £30,000pa + local Govt pension + attractive benefits package
Location: Kirkwall, UK

Team Leader (Harrow School Fitness Club)

Harrow School
Salary: £13.71 per hour
Location: Harrow on the Hill, Harrow, UK

Centre Manager (Leisure)

Exeter City Council
Salary: £40,221 - £42,403pa + pension + benefits
Location: Exeter, UK

Director of Operations

Active Luton
Salary: £61,000 - £64,000 + exceptional pension + excellent benefits
Location: Luton, UK

Fitness Motivator

Everyone Active
Salary: Competitive
Location: Lutterworth

Recreation Assistant/Lifeguard (NPLQ required)

Everyone Active
Salary: 9.50 ph
Location: Lutterworth

Membership Manager

University of Warwick
Salary: £29,605 - £32,982pa + pension + benefits
Location: Coventry, UK

Recreation Assistant

Everyone Active
Salary: Competitive salary
Location: Wigston

Swim Teacher

Everyone Active
Salary: Competitive
Location: Shipston-on-Stour
recruiting with sports management

Swim Teacher

Everyone Active
Salary: Competitive
Location: Shipston-on-Stour

Chief Executive Officer, Mount Batten Centre

Mount Batten Group
Salary: c£65,000pa + pension + benefits
Location: Plymouth, UK

Swim Teacher

Everyone Active
Salary: Competitive
Location: Basildon

Swimming Teacher

Everyone Active
Salary: Competitive rates of pay
Location: Rickmansworth, UK

Swimming Teacher

Everyone Active
Salary: Competitive rates of pay
Location: Watford, UK
Swimming Teacher jobs  duty manager jobs  Team Leader jobs  Swim Manager jobs  general manager jobs  recreation assistant jobs 
More jobs

Company profile

Company profile: Technogym UK Ltd
Technogym offers a complete ecosystem of connected smart equipment, digital services, on-demand training experiences and apps that allow every single end-user to access a completely personalized training experience anytime and anywhere
View full profile >
More company profiles

Featured Supplier

Sibec EMEA to blend fitness with luxury at Fairmont Monte Carlo
Experience the pinnacle of fitness and luxury at the premier industry event, Sibec EMEA, set against the breathtaking backdrop of the Fairmont Monte Carlo this Autumn.
View full details >
More featured suppliers

Property & Tenders

Location: Loughton, IG10
Company: Knight Frank
Location: Grantham, Leicestershire
Company: Belvoir Castle
Location: Verwood, Dorset
Company: AVISON YOUNG
Location: Hall Place House, Bexley, DA5 1PQ
Company: London Borough of Bexley
Location: 15 Concessions across the nation's forests
Company: Forestry England
More properties & tenders

Diary dates

22-24 Apr 2024
Galgorm Resort, York
10-12 May 2024
China Import & Export Fair Complex, Guangzhou, China
23-24 May 2024
Large Hall of the Chamber of Commerce (Erbprinzenpalais), Wiesbaden, Germany
30 May - 02 Jun 2024
Rimini Exhibition Center, Rimini, Italy
More diary dates