Tennis SA records deficit‚ but looks to surplus in 2023

Tennis SA (TSA) has reported a R5.5m deficit for the year ending March 31 2022‚ but president Gavin Crookes tempered this by pointing out the federation was expecting a R2.98m surplus for the current 12-month period.

The annual report showed revenue had grown from R25.5m the previous year to R29.6m‚ half of which came from sponsorships and grants.

Operating expenses‚ however‚ rocketed to R35.2m from R23.6m‚ largely because of the post-pandemic resumption of events‚ including the Davis Cup and Billie Jean Cup competitions.

Tournaments and events accounted for 40% of TSA’s costs‚ with administration taking up 33% and 14% going to schools‚ development and clubs.

The body emphasised it employed a conservative accounting policy of recognising income and expenses “as and when received and incurred”.

Crookes pointed out that TSA had retained all its sponsors‚ an achievement in difficult trading conditions‚ but said the federation should generate its own income.

“[TSA] needs to be self-sustainable and not directly dependent on sponsors and grants‚” Crookes wrote in the annual report.

“Both these sources of income come (understandably so) with obligations to spend according to the provider’s wish.

“An interesting comparison for [TSA] is Tennis Canada — they have an ATP and WTA 1000 event known as the Rogers Cup.

“This generates 93% of their revenue and allows them to spend significant money in the critical areas of high-performance development and strong administration.”

The TSA board was looking to secure a world tour event‚ be it an ATP or WTA 250 tournament‚ he said.

Crookes also highlighted issues such as the lack of resources in some provinces.

“Provincial tennis administration and the running of the business of tennis in certain provinces is a challenge in that it does not‚ in the main‚ meet the governance and capacity levels expected by [TSA]‚ Sascoc and government.

“Most provinces do not have the capacity to do much more than organise leagues as administrators are volunteers and are not remunerated. This places significant pressure on [TSA]‚ particularly when it comes to compiling the numerous reports demanded by government and the Eminent Persons Group [which measures transformation in each code].”

Most provinces do not have the capacity to do much more than organise leagues