SPORT AND ENERGY II: Instead of 200 thousand, a million more. Crazy energy prices drive clubs to bankruptcy

In short, Czech sports are bad.

Too bad, because the complaint about several times higher energy prices does not come from a few clubs, but flows across Unioso. “Ten years ago, Czech sport found itself in existential problems due to its own fault after the fall of Sazka. Now we are in them again, but we are not responsible for them, because it is the result of long-term underfunding of Czech sport. We are rushing into the biggest crisis,” says Miroslav Jansta, head Czech Sports Union (ČUS) and probably the most influential sports official in the country.

He has the results of a survey in front of him, in which ČUS addressed 1,200 clubs that use indoor sports fields. So far, roughly half have responded, but 87 percent of them say that if the situation with energy prices does not improve or the state does not help, they will cease operations within the next year at the latest – 17 percent already this year, 12 percent at the beginning of 2023.

Sokol also did a similar survey and came up with similar alarming numbers. “Small units, which are often also the center of social life, will have to cease operations,” warns Hana Moučková, mayor of the Czech municipality of Sokolská. And you probably know very well yourself how important a social role the falconry plays in smaller communities.

That the municipality would contribute to the rescue? The smallest ones turn over every crown, the bigger ones then have to decide whether to support sports or rather to repair the streets…

If we go by specific sports, then of course the energy-intensive ones, such as hockey or swimming, suffer the most. And also indoor sports such as basketball, volleyball, floorball, handball… Football, which in the past also contributed to the construction of artificial turf for smaller clubs, can survive the whole winter outside in many regions, so energy prices are not so devastating for it. However, invoices to the operators of swimming areas and winter stadiums are growing to enormous heights, and Jansta, for example, warns that if the state does not help, the swimming pool in Prague’s Podolí, which is managed by ČUS, is threatened with closure. The loss here is in the tens of millions.

Just to give you an idea: until recently, winter stadiums paid 1.30 – 1.80 CZK per kWh of electricity, now it is on average over 12 crowns, and in August they even bought it for 25 crowns. “For the month of August, their operators paid more than for the entire year of 2021,” says Milan Vacke, a member of the hockey association’s executive committee. And many stadiums have a fixation that expires at the end of the year, and then it will be dark.

And even though there is now talk of capping the prices promised by the government, the sport does not really know how much it will affect it too. “The energy price ceiling will apply to sports clubs. It is absolutely clear for the smaller clubs,” he said. It will be definitively clear only after the government issues a regulation with a specific description of natural and legal persons who will be entitled to purchase energy at capped prices.

Larger sports organizations, however, are said to be out of luck.

Jansta considers capping the prices for associations as a necessary step to resuscitate the sport, which, according to him, found itself in clinical death. The second is an increase in the budget for operation and maintenance. Already in July, the government threw in 385 million crowns for it in view of the crisis, but the approval of the amount has not yet been passed by the House of Representatives, and the following months brought another increase in prices. In addition, on Wednesday, the deputies suggested that they would reduce this amount by 60 million crowns.

“Based on the data and a comparison with last year, we estimate that the energy costs of all amateur sports venues will be six billion crowns this year. Last year it was two billion, and if there is no ceiling on prices for sports venues as well, it could be as much as 10 billion next year. ČTK quoted the NSA’s statement. “Our goal is to get more money for the clubs so that they can continue to operate. If, on the contrary, their cuts happen, it will hasten the collapse and closure of many sports clubs and sports grounds. Without an increase in funding, we fear the worst, which is the closing of sports grounds and the reduction of children’s sports, to which unfortunately it’s already happening somewhere.”

These are – even considering that the government intends to give only 5.6 billion crowns for the entire sport in 2023 – dizzying figures. Jansta and other officials are therefore appealing for sport to receive 10 to 11 billion.

But before the politicians decide, before they send the money (for example, many clubs still haven’t received funding from the My Club subsidy program!) sports teams have to survive somehow. How? According to the ČUS survey, 54 percent of clubs will limit participation in competitions and tournaments, 42 percent will reduce the number of training sessions, a quarter of clubs will fire children’s coaches, and 73 percent will increase membership fees (the answers of the clubs may have been repeated, so the sum is not equal to one hundred percent).

“If these dark scenarios come true, we can again expect the loss of a number of children in sports. Again, it will be borne by families with children, whose training costs will increase and thus the sport will become less accessible. The state is throwing them overboard, because 90 people play sports in clubs percent of the children. We, on the other hand, will beg like beggars for rescue,” says Jansta.

64 percent of clubs, in their desire to save money, lower the temperature on sports grounds, and in some cases they even turn off the hot water. This is a logical consequence, especially when the government keeps repeating that we will all have to be modest and that we should sit at home in sweaters. So why should sports grounds be “drowning under the boiler”? “But it’s not possible to play beach volleyball at 12 or 13 degrees, it’s life-threatening,” warns Jakub Lébl, head of the Prague Volleyball Association.

And they point out the higher risk of injury at lower temperatures in other sports as well.

“But even if we train at 17 or 18 degrees, that won’t solve the problem,” Jansta responds, saying that only a fraction of the total costs will be saved.

Will the state help the sport from its clinical death, or will the collapse of the clubs come after the New Year?