WFDF today sent out an email to teams registered for WUGC 2020 further clarifying the financial situation of the tournament. Teams had previously been told that they would only be able to get around a quarter of the money they had sent in player fees back should they pull out of the tournament following postponement due to the coronavirus pandemic, and none of the team fees. This announcement had caused some controversy, with teams and players asking to know more about what their money had been spent on.
WFDF and the tournament organising committee (TOC) also said that if teams still wanted to attend the event, now taking place in 2021, then players would need to pay an extra EUR150 to make up for budgetary shortfalls. The federation took the step of sending out a letter from WFDF Vice President Brian Gisel and WFDF Managing Director Events Karina Woldt which included a number of answers to questions they had been asked and a detailed budget provided by the TOC.
The budget shows that costs have been taken out of a number of areas, including marketing, game advisors and competition services like equipment, while extra money has been put into medical costs. The bulk of the increases comes in staffing costs, with the staff involved now going to have to stay working on the tournament for an extra year. The costs of withdrawals have also been factored in, and shows that the amount that has been requested from teams lines up with the rough figures suggested on Ultiworld earlier this week.
Karina Woldt said: “We have listened to what the players and teams have asked, and we want to be open and honest with them about the tournament. We are talking to the TOC about what can be claimed back and they have said that around 25% is what they can currently get from their suppliers. We are hopeful that more could be refunded if the event is cancelled, but we want WUGC to be a great event. The TOC has already managed to reclaim more of their costs than they had expected after some negotiation, and we will do all we can to keep teams, players and federations informed.”
WFDF also clarifies in the letter that the only money they will be taking from the tournament is the relatively low sanctioning fees, with most of the money accepted and used by the TOC. The tournament is still not confirmed, with both WFDF and the TOC awaiting answers from teams that enough can attend to make the event viable. Teams now have until June 17 to respond, with a decision made by mid-July this year as to whether it will go forward.