Cricket Australia has suffered a massive financial loss for the 2022-23 financial year despite hosting the Men’s T20 World Cup and winning the Men’s World Test Championship.
The $16.9 million loss comes amid lower media rights and match revenues during a year without a home Ashes series.It comes despite the 2022-23 season being the most attended in history, with 2.4 million fans going through the gates.CA’s total revenue increased by nine per cent across the year thanks to the T20 World Cup and the $43 million dividend handed to Australia for hosting the event.However, running costs rose by five per cent reflecting the return to a full schedule, higher travel costs post-COVID and investments into the Big Bash League and a new grassroots system.
CA Chairman Mike Bair said it was a year of “high achievement” for cricket with the completion of a new media rights deal, a renewed memorandum of understanding (MOU) with players and high-quality performances from the national teams.
“Cricket has reached an important moment with the continued emergence of franchise cricket creating both significant challenges and enormous opportunities as interest in our sport grows,” he said.
“As a global leader, we believe CA is well placed to play a strong role in shaping the future of cricket including fulfilling our commitment to the primacy of Test cricket and maximising the benefits of our status as an Olympic sport to broaden the game’s horizons.
“At the same time, the achievements of the past year have put us in a strong position to fully exploit the commercial opportunities available to cricket as Australia’s national game and, as importantly, to nurture grassroots cricket.”
The T20 World Cup was the highlight of the year for CA with a crowd of 92,000 attending the match between Pakistan and India at the MCG.
(Sky News)
