Last week on FIVEAA Caroline Wilson reported<\/a> the loss, despite club suggestions the adventure was \u2018cost neutral\u2019.<\/p>\n Thomas has now outlined the nitty-gritty, revealing the game costs $4.5 million to put on.<\/p>\n KEITH THOMAS: We made a small loss on the China game last year & we\u2019ll be close to break even this year. Where we get the benefit is the commercial opportunities. We are building this for the future.<\/p>— RoweyandBicks (@RoweyandBicks) May 29, 2018<\/a><\/blockquote>
\n\u201cThat\u2019s an expensive thing to do,\u201d Thomas told FIVEAA. \u201cWe have to find it.\u201d<\/h3>\n
\u201cWe made a small loss last year — we thought we\u2019d broken even\u2026 but Channel 7 came late. It\u2019s going to be very similar this year but it\u2019s been much harder to get because of the Australian-China relationship.<\/h3>\n
\u201cLast year everyone was fully behind it, the governments. This year: no support — until really late. There was no federal support, Tourism Australia pulled right back\u2026<\/h3>\n
\u201cWe will end up at about the same level, pretty close to beak even for this game. We hope to do it a bit easier next year. We want to make money on the game\u2026<\/h3>\n
\u201cIf it can break even that\u2019s about right. Where we get the benefit is in the commercial opportunities that come from it\u2026 we\u2019re building this for the future.\u201d<\/h3>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n