This module aims to:

Give students an understanding of the core components of a set of financial statements in terms of assets, liabilities, equity income profit and costs;

Provide students with the ability to examine the regulation of sporting institutions and the challenges in developing and implementing financial controls;

Provide students with the opportunity to critically assess a set of financial statements and comment upon the financial strengths, weaknesses and risks associated with an individual sports based business;

Develop students’ ability to value a sports business/institution using a variety of methods.

(LO1) Students will be able to demonstrate detailed understanding of the components of a balance sheet and critically evaluate their interactions and consequences for sports business organisations.

(LO2) Students will be able to demonstrate detailed understanding and critical interpretation of the components of a profit or loss account/income statement and the concept of breakeven and profitability.

(LO3) Students will be able to critically evaluate d the importance of cash to a sports-based business and how cash flows differ from profits.

(LO4) Students will be able to analyse and explain, using financial and non-financial metrics and relationships, the accounts of a sports-based business/institution.

(LO5) Students will be able to value a sports-based business/institution using differing methodologies and analyse the risks involved in such models and methods.

(LO6) Students will be able to evaluate the motives, benefits and drawbacks of having financial controls in relation to sports businesses that are different from those of other industries.

(S1) Commercial awareness
Students will demonstrate commercial awareness through having an understanding of financial statements and how they are linked to external stakeholders and sporting performance.

(S2) Verbal and written communication
Communication skills will be developed through being able to discuss and explain the financial statements of a sporting institution and the relationships within those statements.

(S3) Numeracy
Numeracy skills will be developed through the use of ratio analysis and KPIs when reviewing and summarising financial statements.

(S4) IT skills
IT skills will be used when using spreadsheets and financial forecasts to value sporting institutions.

(S5) Ethical awareness
Ethical awareness skills will be developed by looking at the legal and institutional rules in relation to financial controls and how some involved in the industries seek to circumvent these rules.

The module will primarily be delivered through a combination of campus-based taught lectures and seminars. The campus-based sessions will be augmented with individual online tasks (in seminars and IT labs), case studies and discussion boards which will be used to develop and apply learning to the sport industry and the students’ own work contexts.

2 hour lecture x 5 weeks
2 hour seminar x 5 weeks
1 hour asynchronous learning x 5 weeks
125 hours self-directed learning

Core components of financial statements: assets, liabilities, equity income profit and costs.

Concept of profitability and breakeven in relation to private and non-profit making sport organisations.

Differences between profit and cash flows.

Analysis of financial statements within sports based businesses using financial metrics and key performance indicators to identify financial and non-financial trends.

Regulation of sporting institutions and the challenges in developing and implementing financial controls.

Corporate Governance and Ownership models: sporting relative to financial performance from a multi-stakeholder perspective.

Methods of valuing a sporting business.

Valuation of Business Infrastructure (financial measures and models).

Financial Data Presentation and Visualisation