Three clubs had revenues of over £10 million – Leicester Tigers, Harlequins and Gloucester – while the average for the other nine clubs was around £7 million. However only Gloucester reported a profit, and six clubs reported losses of more than £1 million.
Deloitte said rising attendances have fuelled a 40 per cent rise in revenues in the past five seasons.
“This is a particularly impressive achievement given that rugby union clubs do not receive huge broadcast rights revenues,” said Dan Jones, partner at Deloitte. “However, the rate of cost growth means certain clubs continue to be reliant on benefactor support to sustain them. Attracting new spectators and continuing to build on this attendance growth is therefore critical in order for the majority of clubs to become self sustainable in the longer term.”
