Glamorgan Cricket: County announce profit despite Covid restrictions

Glamorgan's home ground Sophia Gardens hosted four matches at the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup

Glamorgan have announced a profit before tax of £380,420 for 2021, despite Covid-related restrictions on crowds for most of the summer.

The figure compares with a loss of £279,376 for 2020, when a shortened season was played behind closed doors.

The club has thanked the Welsh government and the England & Wales Cricket Board for their financial backing.

Turnover of £8.09 million was almost back to pre-Covid levels.

Government support for Wales's only professional club totals £1.71 million for the two seasons affected by Covid, plus £150,000 from the Cultural Recovery Fund towards the conferencing, events and museum businesses.

"We have survived relatively unscathed in the last 12 months.. in large measure because of the support we have received from the ECB and from the Welsh government," chairman Gareth Williams said in the annual report to members.

Gate receipts were down by around £1m from normal levels, with the season starting behind closed doors and Welsh crowd restrictions lasting longer than those in England.

The T20 Blast, an England international match and the new Hundred franchise tournament all had limited crowds because of public health restrictions.

"2021 was another difficult year for the club and the wider game as we continued to battle against the Covid-19 pandemic," wrote chief executive Hugh Morris in his annual report.

"However it was also a memorable one for Glamorgan as we celebrated our 100th year as a first-class county and won our first trophy in 17 years. There is no doubt that our Royal London Cup triumph will live long in the memory of members and supporters."

Morris also praised the addition of the Hundred to the calendar as "a competition we must continue to embrace", and describes it as a particular opportunity to grow the women's game.

In the wake of the controversy over racism in the sport, Morris has pointed to a new strategy on equality, diversity and inclusion being developed by the club along with Cricket Wales, which runs the game below professional level.

"We are actively taking steps to engage with our diverse communities across Wales to ensure that cricket is a welcoming environment for all," he wrote.

Among targets for the future, Morris lists improving the team, the academy, and facilities, finding a west Wales base after St Helen's in Swansea disappeared from the fixture list, and rebuilding the conference side of the business to improve financial sustainability.

The report will be discussed at the county's annual general meeting on Thursday, 24 March, which returns to their Sophia Gardens headquarters after two years of being staged online.