Páirc Uí Chaoimh debt remains north of €31m as Cork team spending tops €2m
Championship And Hurling Cork Feakle Between The Uí General Senior Munster Final During Sarsfields Sets Moran/sportsfile View A Supervalu Sun Of At In The Semi Action Match Picture: The Chaoimh Gaa As Brendan Páirc Aib Club
The dial on Cork GAA’s mountain of debt has moved only fractionally over the past 12 months, with the county’s 2024 accounts showing total debt now stands at €31.1m.
With team spending surging past the €2m mark for the first time, Cork county board’s end of year surplus came in at a modest €52,000. This bottom-line figure represented a significant fall on last year’s €468k profit.
The most pressing financial concern, though, remains the debt outstanding from the redevelopment of Páirc Uí Chaoimh, which fell by just €141k when set against last year’s figures.
Bank debt, as of September 2024, stands at €19.181m, with Cork GAA making annual repayments of €1m upwards. Monies owed to Croke Park, meanwhile, totals €11.9m.
The two figures combined leave total debt reaching €31,157,000.
With regard to the county’s Croke Park loan, there was an agreement made with Croke Park during the year to restructure that loan and commit to annual repayments of €636,000.
The Páirc Uí Chaoimh company accounts for 2024 show a comprehensive loss of €1.9m, this despite a turnover of €5.5m. The loss figure is, however, significantly down on last year’s €2.68m.
Against this backdrop of continuing stadium losses and €31.1m debt, Cork GAA CEO Kevin O'Donovan, in his annual report, has declared that “a financial pathway is now clearly established under the strategic plan and hopefully, the next few years will see us emerge from a difficult period”.
O’Donovan added that “we will continue to pursue financial stability while engaging diligently with stadium debt”.
Both commercial and fundraising income rose over the past year, to €1.47m and €1.34m respectively, with O’Donovan remarking how “challenging commercial decisions” had to be made in a bid to establish financial stability. The most controversial of those decisions was selling the naming rights of Páirc Uí Chaoimh earlier this year and its subsequent rebranding as SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh.
“We remain grateful by the patience shown as we navigated our way towards a satisfactory outcome in securing a naming rights partner after a lengthy process. No different to when our teams line out, it was easy for those on the sidelines to claim the moral high ground as we grappled with challenging commercial decisions in establishing financial stability, despite the significant debt outstanding from the stadium development,” the Cork GAA CEO noted.
“It is in this difficult context that all financial and commercial decisions are made as we attempt to insulate our clubs and teams from any negative impacts. It was most satisfying to finally formalise the deal with SuperValu, a brand with impeccable reputation and obvious Cork roots.
“While Bruce Springsteen, Munster Rugby and the Women’s Football international allowed us to diversify further this year in terms of stadium events, a significant leap was taken with the recent launch of Winterlee. This has moved the dial further on what the new stadium can represent as a municipal, community hub.
“After a difficult start, all 2,200 Premium seats are now sold. Indeed, such was demand in the past year a new South Stand seat package was launched recently. High levels of interest in this regard illustrate the obvious effect that successful teams have on associated commercial income.
“Similarly, there was a strong increase in the uptake of several fundraising events across the year. Three sold-out All Ireland warm-up events, three sold–out golf classics at the Old Head, Powerscourt and Cork Golf Club along with our first ever Dublin luncheon at the Clayton Burlington all showed a deep interest in supporting our teams both financially and in terms of extending associated networks.”