Cricket Australia faces huge losses this year

Cricket Australia is facing up to a projected loss of more than $14m in the current financial year, with contests against New Zealand, Pakistan and West Indies expected to be damp squibs. Australia's Sunday Telegraph newspaper, which had access to CA's report for 2003-04, has said that the organisation expects to post a loss of $14.2m, as compared to a healthy surplus of $4.5m last year when India were the visitors.

The takings from the gate for the Tests against New Zealand and Pakistan are also expected to be more than $1m down, with the aggregate crowd expected to be the lowest in a decade.

According to Peter Young, spokesperson for Cricket Australia, the developments were not unexpected. "We always knew this coming year would be a deficit year, as will the next year [against West Indies]," he said. "It's not a concern, it's part of the cycle in this business.

"It would be nice not to have trough years, it would be fabulous to have a surplus every year. And that's one of cricket's critical long-term concerns - to be profitable year in, year out. Australian cricket revenue is very cyclical. We have always had years where we make a surplus and years where we make a deficit and the key driver is which countries tour for that summer."

Cricket Australia made a killing over the past two summers, with England and India visiting. The Ashes contests have always drawn crowds, and the TV rights also sell for top dollar, as they did when India - the game's financial powerhouse - came over for Steve Waugh's farewell series last summer.

According to the paper's projections, CA will have reserve funds of around $18.2m after this financial year, well down on the $32.4m that were in the coffers at the completion of the last season.

In 2001-02, CA had reserve funds of $15.9m. If this year's projections are accurate, that figure will rise to $18.2m - but it's a huge drop on the $32.4m CA had in its coffers at the completion of the 2003-04 financial year.

After 568,774 watched a largely one-sided Ashes series, and 512,692 trooped through the turnstiles for a thrilling drawn series against India (four Tests), only 154,964 have bothered to make the trek to the grounds for the first three Tests of the summer.