Bad times for international sports federations. The cascading cancellations of all events on the calendar, in spring and now also in summer, are emptying their coffers with the violence of a siphon. In the longer term, the postponement of the Tokyo Games prepares them for an even more delicate future.
Example: the UCI. At the initiative of its president, the Frenchman David Lappartient, the international cycling institution convened last week, Thursday April 2, an extraordinary meeting of its steering committee. On the agenda, the global health crisis and its repercussions on the economy of the discipline.
David Lappartient notes this: “ Our international federation is going through an unprecedented crisis since the Second World War. Inactivity hits athletes, teams, organizers, partners and the vast majority of people and organizations who contribute to keeping our sport alive, in all its disciplines. The UCI, the governing body of cycling, is not spared, far from it. »
The UCI has done its accounts. They send shivers down your spine. To date, it has recorded more than 650 requests for postponement or cancellation of events, or 30% of the international calendar, until August 2020. Road racing and mountain biking are the disciplines most affected .
The Giro d’Italia, the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix were affected. The cross-country mountain bike world championships scheduled for Albstadt, Germany, have been postponed. Several rounds of the MTB World Cup will have to be rescheduled, while others have had to be canceled at the request of their organizers.
The next road world championships, scheduled for September 20 to 27, 2020 in Aigle-Martigny, Switzerland, remain on the calendar. According to the UCI, they “ seem sheltered from the consequences of Covid-19 given their dates. » Possible. Not sure.
« It is clear that postponements and cancellations will unfortunately result in a significant reduction in UCI revenues.”, recognizes the body based in Aigle, Switzerland, in a press release.
The registration fees paid to the UCI by the organizers of competitions, including the various world championships, will indeed constitute a serious shortfall. They represented approximately 45% of the international institution's revenues for the period 2015-2018.
The UCI announces this in a press release: it will reimburse the organizers of canceled events – and included in the period during which the holding of events is not possible – the entirety of the calendar registration fees. “ This initiative will not fail to have consequences on the results of the UCI.", specifies the international federation.
The postponement of the Tokyo Games? It too could cost world cycling dearly. “ It is necessary to anticipate both a possible postponement to 2021 of the payment of Olympic revenues, initially expected in the second half of 2020, and a probable reduction in the amount paid to international federations., warns David Lappartient.
The IOC must redistribute $540 million to the 28 Summer Olympic federations (excluding additional sports) in revenue from television rights and marketing. The UCI received just under $26 million for the previous Olympics.
Since the decision to postpone the Tokyo Games, the IOC has been questioned by several international federations about the possibility of paying an advance on Olympic subsidies. To date, he has not yet given his response.
How to resist ? By tightening the bolts. On Thursday April 2, the UCI steering committee adopted a savings plan intended to help the organization withstand heavy weather. In particular, it provides for reductions in salaries and wages of some of its “ leaders” (their identity and the level of the reduction are not mentioned), but also the partial or total leave of the 130 UCI employees.
At the same time, recruitment will be frozen for an indefinite period, the projects planned for 2020 and subsequent years will all be revised. The UCI also announces a “ resizing solidarity projects for national federations ». Finally, it plans to renegotiate the contracts of service providers for events, but also those of consultants and general suppliers. Austerity. Waiting for the recession.
