Football Association of Wales records £1m loss at start of Covid-19 pandemic

FAWfaw/Lewis Mitchell

The Football Association of Wales (FAW) made a loss of more than £1m in the period covering the start of the coronavirus pandemic, according to newly published accounts.

The cancellation of home friendly fixtures for the men's senior side and the postponement of the Euro 2020 finals contributed to the figures.

The accounts for the financial year up to July 2020 - which covered the first three months of lockdown restrictions - saw the governing body make a post-tax loss of £1.032m having made a profit of £264,520 the previous year.

Turnover for the period dropped 5% to £14.565m from £15.319m.

The report accompanying the accounts says the the association had prepared itself in case the entirety of the 2020-21 season was played behind closed doors.

The FAW said it was confident cash reserves (£8.9m as of September 2021) would make it able to deal with any ongoing loss of revenue.

Wales fans returned under restrictions to watch the men's senior side in June 2021 for a pre-Euros friendly with Albania. Unrestricted crowds returned at the start of the 2021-22 season.

Then chief executive Jonathan Ford - who left his role in March this year - claimed in October 2020 football in Wales was battling a "dire situation" with finances affected by ongoing restrictions preventing supporters attending games at all levels.

Assistance was later received in the form of grants from world football governing body Fifa, the National Lottery and a £1.5m package of support from the Welsh Government. The FAW also utilised the UK Government's job retention scheme.

In the recent accounts, the association's biggest income came from broadcast revenue (£6.36m), pre-existing deals being unaffected by the pandemic.

In the report submitted to Companies House, the FAW states it was confident the delayed Euros tournament - eventually played between June and July 2021 - would help engineer a profit.

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