CTS Eventim losses just €17.7m in 2020

Thanks to insurance compensation, the introduction of ticket vouchers in key markets and tens of millions of euros’ worth of cost cutting, CTS Eventim has lost just €17.7 million this year, the company’s latest financial figures reveal.

The Munich-based, pan-European live entertainment giant released its fiscal results for the first nine months of 2020 today (19 November), with the headline figure a 79% decline in turnover, to €228.7m, in financial quarters one to three.

However, showing earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) at a modest -€17.7m – and assets of nearly €800m in cash and cash equivalents – the report illustrates the relative strength of CTS Eventim’s financial position as the business heads into an uncertain winter.

Commenting on the figures, CTS Eventim CEO Klaus-Peter Schulenberg says: “We have been convinced since the outbreak of the pandemic that the stresses imposed on our company must be seen as a trial of our strengths. That is the basis on which we act. There is no such thing as standstill.”

Key to the better-than-expected financials is the introduction of ticket voucher schemes, which allow promoters to offer credit, instead of cash, for postponed shows, in Germany, Italy and elsewhere.

“In the midst of this crisis, especially, we continue to bank on our strengths”

According to Schulenberg, the company has also made cost reductions worth a “double-digit-million [euro] figure” in 2020, with investments also “reduced to a minimum”, while insurance pay-outs for cancelled shows organised by its owned promoters have brought in another €43.3m this year.

“In the midst of this crisis, especially, we continue to bank on our strengths, namely technology and industry know-how,” continues Schulenberg, highlighting a new partnership with the European Handball Federation, as well as ticketing deals with football clubs Werder Bremen and Hannover 96, as evidence of the continued popularity of its platform in the sporting world.

“This is how we continue to convince our customers, both new and existing,” he adds.

For sports and live entertainment clients, meanwhile, Eventim is (like rivals Ticketmaster and See Tickets) offering a reengineered ticketing package designed to help promoters organise Covid-secure, socially distanced events. “Maintaining minimum distancing and logging visitor data are the prime focus,” says the company.

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