19 Jul 2018 07:00
Goals Soccer Centres plc
("Goals" or the "Company")
Post close trading update
Goals Soccer Centres plc, a leading operator of outdoor small-sided soccer centres with 49 sites, including three in California, North America, today reports on its trading for the first half of the financial year ending 31 December 2018 in advance of the release of the Company's interim results on 12 September 2018.
· As previously announced, Q1 2018 was impacted by the extreme weather conditions during March and April. As a direct result of this, there has been a further substantial knock-on impact on trading throughout Q2 2018. This is due to amateur 11-a-side games deferred from Q1 to dates in Q2 when teams would normally be playing 5-a-side. This resulted in a decline in Underlying Sales1 and Underlying Like-for-Like Sales1 for the period of -3% (H1 2017: +1.6%) to £16.1m (2017: £16.6m).
· Continued good progress in growing and innovating the UK estate with 260 of our 460 arenas now fully modernised. These continue to deliver good returns at clubs where five or more arenas have been upgraded. The planned investment of £3m in upgrading a further 78 arenas is underway and will be complete by the autumn. This will increase the number of arenas modernised to 338 (73% of our estate) and 39 of our 46 clubs in the UK will have 5 or more upgraded arenas. Goals have also agreed with its lenders to amend its Net Debt/EBITDA covenant from 3.0x to 3.25x, to provide additional headroom in the quarterly tests in June and September 2018, after which the covenant will reduce back to 3.0x.
· In the US, our South Gate club is performing well. Pomona and Rancho, which opened in January, are progressing and showing growth. A fourth club at Covina, Los Angeles is now under construction and work is expected to be completed by the end of 2018.
· While we expect H2 to benefit from the investment programme that has been undertaken, the results for the full year are expected to be materially below market expectations, due to the impacts of the extreme weather in H1.
Andy Anson, Chief Executive Officer said:
"The investment strategy that is being executed is improving the underlying performance of the clubs. However, frustratingly, the first half was impacted by the snow and its significant after-effects, which masks the performance of the business where positive trends are clear. With the improving underlying performance, we expect a better second half."
19 July 2018
The information contained within this announcement is deemed to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014. Upon the publication of this announcement, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.
Enquiries:
Goals Soccer Centres plc Andy Anson, Chief Executive Officer Bill Gow, Chief Financial Officer | 01355 234 800 |
Canaccord Genuity Limited (Nominated Adviser and Broker) Chris Connors Martin Davison Richard Andrews | 020 7523 8350 |
Instinctif Partners Matthew Smallwood Andy Low | 020 7457 2020 |
1. Underlying Sales
Total sales in 2018 consist of 6 months of UK sales and no US sales as the financial results of Goals Soccer Centers Inc have been accounted for using the equity method of accounting since July 2017 when the Joint Venture with City Football Group was completed. Therefore, it is necessary to introduce alternative performance measures that allow a greater degree of comparability between years.
Underlying Sales and Underlying Like-for-Like Sales comparatives has been calculated assuming the same ownership structure in place at 30 June 2018 was in place at 30 June 2017 i.e. that sales from Goals US are excluded from both.