Ospreys: Welsh region announce loss of more than £2m amid 'challenging' times
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Ospreys are currently the best-placed Welsh region in the United Rugby Championship, in 11th, though they lost at home to Munster last Friday
Ospreys have announced a loss of more than £2m for the year ending June 2023, an increase of almost £1m on the previous year.
The news comes just days after fellow Welsh region Scarlets confirmed losses of almost £3m for the same period.
Ospreys hope a funding agreement with the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) will be "the basis for the long-term survival of professional rugby in Wales".
They added that reduced budgets would continue to make seasons "challenging".
Ospreys' comments were made in notes accompanying accounts filed with Companies House.
Earlier this week, Scarlets chairman Simon Muderack called for the WRU to address the game's financial issues "urgently" as they saw losses increase by more than £1m.
Under the current deal between the WRU and Scarlets, Dragons, Cardiff and Ospreys, each team will receive £4.5m central funding for 2024-25, down from £5.2m this season.
The four regions, who are also repaying a £20m loan negotiated by the WRU as a result of the Covid pandemic, struck a six-year participation agreement with the WRU in March 2023.
Ospreys received £6.95m from the governing body during the year ending June 2023.
However, that central funding has been reduced to £5.2m for the current campaign - and will drop further, to £4.5m, for 2024-25.
Ospreys said the agreement "enables us to have more certainty and visibility over funding and cash flows".
The Swansea-based region did manage to increase turnover in the year ending June 2023 by just under £100,000, but they still saw losses increase by 82% from £1.18m to £2.15m as costs and other outgoings rose.
Income was boosted by increased sponsorship and gate receipt revenue. The region blamed the cost of living crisis for crowds remaining low.
The accounts show owners Y11 Sports and Media contributed £2m of funding during the year -compared to around £1m the previous set of accounts - while there was a repayment of loans worth £377,000.
The other Welsh regions, Cardiff Rugby - who made a £2.2m loss in their last accounts - and Dragons are due to release their financial results for 2023 by the end of June.