Derbyshire County Cricket Club has recorded its eleventh surplus in twelve years for the year ending 31 December 2024.
As a result of careful financial management amid the pressure of increased operating costs, the Club can post a pre-tax profit of £11k, while investing a record amount in its cricket budget and continuing to develop spectator facilities at The County Ground.
Chair, Ian Morgan OBE, said: “Amid testing financial times for all, in which costs are only going up, it is with great pride that we can announce a small surplus and a testament to the hard work of everyone associated with the Club.
“To be debt-free and able to safeguard our future in the current climate is a healthy position to be in, however we must continue work hard off-field to ensure we can compete out in the middle. It is becoming increasingly difficult to challenge financially with the larger counties, but we remain committed to investing in our playing budget to give Mickey Arthur and his squad the best chance of success, while maintaining our secure financial position which is highly regarded across the game.”
In 2024, the Club saw sold-out Vitality Blast matches against local rivals Notts Outlaws and Yorkshire, while group ticket sales more than doubled compared to 2023 and the T20 showpiece event at Edgbaston, returning on 14 June this year as Midlands Mania, also proved to be an important revenue-generator.
The Club’s Conference & Events arm of the business continued to grow last year, while The County Ground once again played host to a major music event with the visit of bestselling rap duo D-Block Europe.
Despite the loss of the Club’s Principal Partner on the eve of the season, Derbyshire continues to be well-backed by its sponsors and that revenue stream remains in achieving a year end surplus.
Chief Executive, Ryan Duckett, said: “This result is largely down to our off-field team who continue to drive revenue and efficiency across both cricket and non-cricket events while striving to maintain a high-quality customer experience.
“It continues to be a challenging economic time, but while the details are yet to be confirmed, the recent external investment which has come into the game represents an opportunity to realise our ambitions for our venue and in turn drive commercial growth and further investment on-field.
“Much of that work will come as part of our long-term ground masterplan, but over this winter, the off-field team have again been busy delivering further improvement which includes significant investment in the players’ changing rooms, LED lighting in the Ryley Wealth Elite Performance Centre, ground-wide Wi-Fi, as well as a new 900-seater stand adjacent to the Media Centre.
“On behalf of the Supervisory Board and the off-field team, I would like to thank our sponsors, Members and all visitors to both cricket and non-cricket events for their continued support.”
The Club’s Annual Report and Accounts were approved by Members at the Annual General Meeting on Wednesday 26 March at The County Ground. Derbyshire will be back in action at Queen’s Park later this year for the BRM Chesterfield Festival of Cricket. Find out more about the event at: https://www.chesterfield.co.uk/events/the-chesterfield-festival-of-cricket/
Derbyshire County Cricket Club supports the marketing and economic growth of the town through Chesterfield Champions, a network of over 200 organisations across Chesterfield and North Derbyshire.
