Accumulated profits at the main firm owned by Irish rugby legend, Brian O'Driscoll surged last year to €10.47m.
New abridged accounts filed by O’Driscoll’s O.D.M. & Promotions Ltd to the Companies Office show the company recorded post tax profits of €810,463 in the 12 months to the end of last August - an average post tax profit of €15,585 per week.
The profits for 2023 show that O’Driscoll - now 45 - continues to retain stellar earning power - nine years after retiring from the game of professional rugby.
The profits of €810,463 are a 26% increase on the post tax profits of €641,383 recorded in the 12 months to the end of August 2022.
Cash funds at the company last year increased by €282,549 from €1.85m to €2.14m.
The company achieved the increase in post tax profits despite the additional cost last year of directors receiving €212,707 following zero paid out under that heading in 2022.
In yet another buoyant year for the business, the value of the company’s financial assets increased by €224,749 from €5.693m to €5.917m.
The book value of the company’s investment properties reduced from €1.8m to €1.04m and this followed 'disposals’ with a book value of €763,057.
A note says that the investment properties are rented residences.
The firm has consistently recorded strong profits in recent years and the profits of 2023 and 2022 follow profits of €874,120 profits in 2021; €899,710 in 2020, €694,791 for 2019 and €596,006 in 2018 as the Clontarf man's financial fortunes have continued to flourish away from the playing field.
O’Driscoll’s website states that he "now works in a number of capacities in the business and sporting world" and O’Driscoll appears as a regular rugby pundit on Newstalk and was part of ITV’s pundit line-up for its Rugby World Cup coverage last Autumn.
Pay to staff at the company, which includes directors, increased from €124,470 to €348,754 made up of wages and salaries of €335,251 and €13,503 in social insurance costs.
The firm’s financial assets are made up of €3.94m in shares in group undertakings; €679,906 in participating interests while there was €224,749 in additions to ‘other investments’ - offset by a write down of €91,486 - to bring to a total of €1.25m.
The €679,906 in participating investments relates to a 33.3% investment in White Water LLC, a New York limited liability company.
O’Driscoll ended his decorated playing career with Ireland and Leinster in 2014 and the ODM & Promotions Ltd’s only other director is O’Driscoll’s father, Frank.
The two signed off on the accounts on July 4th.
O'Driscoll, then aged 22, established the ODM firm in 2001 as part of his bid to capitalise on being the most marketable Irish player of the modern rugby era.
During an illustrious playing career, O’Driscoll won one Grand Slam with Ireland, three European Heineken Cups with Leinster and was capped 133 times by Ireland scoring 46 tries.
Separate accounts filed by the other half of Ireland’s 'Golden Couple', Amy Huberman show that the cash funds at her entertainment firm passed the €1m mark for the first time in 2023.
Away from her acting and writing career, Ms Huberman - who featured on Amazon Prime Video's Last One Laughing Ireland earlier this year - continues to be a favourite of companies building their brands.
The new accounts filed by Ms Huberman’s ASM Entertainment Ltd show that the company recorded post tax profits of €233,628 in the 12 months to the end of August last and this was an 18.5% increase on the post tax profits recorded of €197,097 in 2022.
Mr Huberman’s popularity with the Irish public is confirmed with a combined audience of over 934,000 on the Dubliner's Twitter and Instagram accounts and accumulated profits at the company last year increased from €1.058m to €1.291m.
Cash funds at the company increased €245,645 from €826,766 to €1.07m.
- reporting Gordon Deegan
