RWC win bolsters England's resources

England's victory at the 2003 Rugby World Cup has bolstered Twickenham's financial position and has brought a whole new swathe of participants to the English game, according to the Rugby Football Union's (RFU) annual general report.

Rugby World Cup years are the least prosperous periods for unions as tours and home fixtures are cut to make way for the showpiece competition, but the RFU managed to stem their projected losses with merchandise sales, which were twice as high as predicted.

"We expected a £9m (US$16.8m) reduction in revenue but our results our significantly better than that," said RFU Finance Director Nick Eastwood.

"We expected a loss of about £6m ($11.1m) but expect now it will be less than that.

"It's been an astonishing year in terms of retail, merchandise, licensing and ticket income and for 2004/05 we're predicting a return to a healthy bottom line."

By way of comparison, the previous financial year left Scotland and Ireland with losses of £8.6m ($16m) and E6.3m ($7.8m) respectively. 

The RFU's strong financial position - debt-free with net cash assets of £30m ($55.9m) - will underpin the re-development of the South Stand at Twickenham, increasing the capacity of the stadium by 8,500 seats. It was also announced that June 2005 was the likely start date for building work.

Meanwhile, it was reported that an estimated 10,000 adults took up or returned to the game last season.

There has been a 15 percent increase in mini-rugby (seven to 11-year-olds) and a 10 percent increase in the 12 to 16-year-old age group, as well as the recruitment of 4,000 new coaches.

RFU boss Francis Baron put the increases down to the implementation of the 'Rugby: Making an Impact' programme which was launched last September, and the Sweet Chariot Tour which has taken the Webb Ellis Trophy around the country to be seen by more than a million people.

Baron also paid tribute to the legions of rugby lovers who sacrifice their weekends to help out at grassroots level.

"The game couldn't survive without volunteers, and since the Sweet Chariot Tour started there has been a nine percent increase in their numbers," said Baron.

"The key now is to ensure the gains we have made are cemented and we continue to go forward."