Team’s failures will concentrate minds on the club’s off-the-field performance
ARE Leicester Tigers in financial trouble? The easy answer would be to say that there is enough money held by the existing, effectively controlling, shareholders to keep the club afloat almost regardless of external forces.
Tom Scott owns just short of a majority interest (and would be seen as the owner under stock market rules) and in conjunction with one of any other four individuals/ organisations does have over 50 per cent of the shares issued.
In terms of the latest books the Tigers’ business is relatively healthy with assets vastly outstripping liabilities and the major shareholders in a healthy, if not super-rich, position.
The only worry on the horizon is that the latest accounts, usually available at this point of the year, have still to be issued.
The fact that no AGM has yet been announced might also give some concern.
During the Covid crisis, the club has certainly taken appropriate action in respect of costs, cutting salaries across the board, playing and non-playing staff, and new CEO Andrea Pinchen has performed remarkably well in respect of sponsorship deals announced during this difficult period.
Shadows on the horizon might include the threatened legal action by players allegedly offered pay cuts or the door potentially in breach of contract, and this might go some way towards explaining the delayed appearance of the accounts, since presumably contingency amounts are likely to have been set aside to deal with those claims.
Meanwhile, two coaches, old and new, have departed Oval Park in the short pre-season period. We’ll never know whether the motivation for this was even partly cost-cutting, but the club go into the new season nominally two coaches down from the planned staffing requirements.
Even allowing for Richard Wigglesworth filling an unofficial player-coach role there will have been money saved. There is even unhelpful speculation regarding the future of Geordan Murphy, which would again save money but wouldn’t be particularly popular with the fans, nor would it encourage future loyalty (an issue that Tigers have struggled with for the last eight years or so).
Another interpretation is that these changes are as a result of Steve Borthwick taking command of a leaking if not sinking ship, and almost certainly the Tigers’ financial position is secure, but there is enough smoke on the horizon to keep a concerned eye on the club as the Covid crisis rumbles on. Failure to improve on the field results will only concentrate minds on the off-field performance.