A small profit. That's what the RBC Cup, Canada's Junior A hockey championship tournament, made when Humboldt hosted it last May. According to a news release issued on October 12 by the local 2012 RBC Cup committee, "financially, the event turned a small profit at this point. Overall expenditures were lower than budgeted however income was lower than anticipated. MNP is currently working on the audit which will be released to the media and partners in the next couple of weeks," the release stated.While no number has been released, it has been noted that the small profit made by the event will be split among the teams that attended the tournament.There will not be enough, it was noted, for any funds to go to the legacy plan for the event, which involved splitting funds between facility leasehold improvements for the Broncos, scholarship funds for the Humboldt Broncos and Saskatchewan Hockey Association, and Humboldt Minor Hockey equipment purchases and training."There has been a tremendous amount of work since the RBC Cup 2012 was hosted in Humboldt," the news release notes. "An abundance of accounting work needed to be done along with preparing the final report for Hockey Canada."The week of the event went over very well, the release continued. "Volunteers and businesses should be very proud of themselves for providing exceptional customer service to the visiting teams and to the fans that attended the tournament," it stated. A large number of media outlets covered the tournament, from local newspapers to television stations to radio stations. Games were also shown online on FASTHockey, and an average viewing audience for each game through the online system was 1,000. There were also the highest web hits ever in RBC Cup history for the 2012 event in Humboldt, an increase of nearly 40 per cent from the previous year.The total attendance at the 13 games was 21, 222, resulting in a total ticket revenue of $233,218, stated the final report for the event.Beyond the financial, as a result of the RBC Cup being hosted in Humboldt, there were renovations and upgrades done to the arena, it was noted in the news release. "The City of Humboldt renovated and painted the dressing rooms downstairs, installed new matting in the tunnel, purchased a new zamboni, amongst other things. The RBC Cup Committee purchased a new washer and dryer for the Humboldt Broncos as well as contributed some dollars toward the matting."Bronco bucks Humboldt Broncos won't be getting any cash from the 2012 RBC Cup, due to a loan the RBC Cup committee made to the Broncos to cover the cost of the 50-50 system they had installed at the beginning of last season.The Broncos were paid a rental for the 50-50 system by the RBC Cup committee for the 10 days of the tournament, and received the funds that each team that attended the RBC Cup did. But that money went towards their outstanding loan from the RBC Cup Committee for the 50-50 system, not to a cash payout."Obviously, it's not what we were hoping for in the end, but it didn't cost us any money," stated Humboldt Broncos president Bob Johnston about the RBC Cup at the Broncos' annual general meeting held October 10. There was good sponsor recognition at the tournament, he said, the volunteers were treated well, Hockey Canada appreciated the work put into it, and "everyone had a good time," he noted. "Overall, (the RBC Cup has been) classified as a success, though there was a smaller profit than hoped," Johnston said.
