SUPPORT

We are amateur but compete against rivals that are semi – or indeed sometimes fully – professional. So our aim is to be ‘professionally’ run. This means we need professional level coaches, medical care, strength & conditioning and administration.

Moreover, scholarships (and often more) are standard for top prospects at all Varsity Cup member universities. Given that the cost of tuition and living are high, even for affluent parents, we would not be able to attract top-quality players without the provision of scholarships – indeed this is by far our greatest expense.

But because we aim not only to win but to provide young people with the foundation for a successful life after UCT and after rugby we also provide academic support and tutoring but most importantly an opportunity to develop values, character and friendships and experience joy at a club like no other. Every year our club has a positive influence on many young lives and changes the course of several entirely.

We are as proud of our players’ graduation rates (more than 20% higher than the average UCT student) as we are of our international and professional rugby players.

However unlike our key competitors we receive no financial support from UCT (outside of the maintenance of our fields). As the then Vice Chancellor stated in 2017 “UCT’s goal with respect to sport is firstly, and as a priority, to advance broad participation across multiple sports codes with an emphasis on recreation…. The resources that the University allocates to sport are generally limited. Where choices have to be made, we have generally not wanted to compromise broad participation in favour of high performance teams”.

While we may not agree, we do appreciate that UCT is under financial pressure and has other priorities.  But it does mean that if we are to survive and thrive we need the support of donors.

Our sponsors, particularly FNB, are hugely valued and their support of both the Varsity Cup competition and our Club are essential. However, the reality is that the cost of a competitive Varsity Cup Campaign vastly exceeds the total sponsorship amount.  Indeed our annual budget is approximately R10M, split approximately 1/3/, 1/3 1/3 between scholarships, salaries and operational expenses.

Our total commercial / sponsorship income and income from subscriptions and ticket sales is R2,75M, meaning that we need to raise R7,25M each year to sustain our remarkable success on and off the field.

Historically this has overwhelmingly come from a (very) small number of substantial donors. We acknowledge with gratitude in particular: The Invictus Scholarship Fund / The Cockwell Family, our President Neville Isdell, The Zannettin Trust and several other anonymous donors without whom we would not have prospered as we have, and indeed may not have survived.

However we need to make the club sustainable and this requires the support of many smaller donors.  The members of what was the “200 Club” and is now the Ikey Tigers Supporters Club have provided some of this support but we need many more members / supporters to sign up.

Please become a supporter – we have 1000s of ex-players and supporters who, for the equivalent of their monthly coffee can make a real difference to the lives of outstanding young men every year.

We have a number of tax efficient ways to handle donations.  For South African, donors we have established The Ikey Development Foundation Trust (a registered PBO) and for donors from offshore UCT itself has charitable status in the UK, USA, Canada and Australia, all entitling donors to tax deductions or credits.