Goals Soccer Centres swings to full year loss

Goals Soccer Centres swung to a loss in 2015 as sales fell and the company booked an impairment charge.

In the year to the end of December, the five-a-side football venue operator posted a pre-tax loss of £6.2m compared to a £6.8m profit in 2014 as it booked a non-cash exceptional impairment charge of £14.5m made up of goodwill, asset impairment and software development.

Group sales fell 4.9% to £33m, while like-for-like sales slid 6.3% and the company said it now faces increased competition from new grant-aided full size 3G pitches. UK LFL sales were down 6.7% but US LFL sales rose 8.4%.

The group, which operates 47 football centres in the UK and one in Los Angeles, did not recommend a final dividend for this year.

Also on Monday, Goals said it has appointed Nick Basing as executive chairman with immediate effect, with Keith Edelman stepping down from the board.

Basing said: "2015 was undoubtedly a disappointing year, however Goals still has a very sound operating model.

“I will be continuing to spearhead the ongoing review into every aspect of the business to develop a new strategy to improve performance and returns, partly based around a re-investment program to rejuvenate and grow the business.”

Still, the company said like-for-like sales in the first nine weeks of this year have returned to very modest growth.

Goals said it opened two new sites in Manchester and Doncaster in the first half of 2015, but it is not seeking any further UK sites in the foreseeable future.

Goals Soccer Centres issued two profit warnings last year, one in September and another in November, namely on the back of challenging market conditions in the UK.

At 1010 GMT, Goals shares were down 4% to 111.89p.