Munster’s financial forecasts reveal value of home Euro ties

The importance of securing a home European quarter-final for Irish provinces extends well beyond the field of play, Munster’s annual financial report has revealed.

The recent AGM of the Munster Branch was told of a projected deficit for the year ending June 30, 2014, of €600,000, which would have been a lot worse had it not been for Rob Penney’s side earning a home draw against Toulouse for the knockout stages.

“The Heineken Cup quarter-final created in excess of €450,000 profit,” Munster financial controller Philip Quinn said, as he gave a fascinating breakdown of who gets what, and from where, on a big European matchday at Thomond Park.

“The revenue from a Heineken Cup quarter-final can be about €900,000. Match costs are €180,000, that leaves you with €720,000. The visiting team gets €360,000, we get €360,000, the IRFU takes €180,000 of our €360,000, so that leaves €180,000.

“The IRFU takes the prize money, which would be about €450-500,000. It’s very lopsided all right, but in fairness to the IRFU they are providing some financial support to us, too.”

So where does the rest of the profit Munster retained come from?

“Hospitality and sponsorship would have been the main income,” Quinn said. “In our sponsorship agreements we have performance-related incentives. Hospitality was a major factor too, we would have made in the region of €100,000 from the bars and outside hospitality on the day.

“There was also some additional pro-team costs resulting from performance-related bonuses, again from getting to the Heineken Cup quarter-final. There is also a structure of match bonuses. The IRFU allow us (Munster) 10 win bonuses for the players. The IRFU pay all those bonuses for us. If you win more than that, the bill gets higher for the province at the end of the year.

“When you look at the figures, it is very easy to say, why are you still spending this amount of money? If you are not investing money, then the 450k profit from the Heineken Cup quarter- final is not possible. We are still trying to compete with the English and French clubs.

“We are probably not far off where the English teams were this year, but with the additional BT (TV broadcasting rights) money coming into those clubs next season, that will give them an advantage. We all know where the French clubs are currently operating, they are in a different league, but we are competing well in it.”