Craig’s right, lose control and you don’t get it back
“Any new corporate owner would first seek a ring-fence and then put in place a number of overseas games”
Isn’t it strange how rugby seems to have a game-changing crisis one day and then everything is rosy the next? It seems the need to find new tales to tell distracts from finishing what has been previously raised and is an issue for concern for all.
Whether stories of financial plight or mismanagement, changes to the global game, or something as simple as a coach being sacked and players misbehaving, it seems the game moves on without actually answering any of the questions these problems create, as if they have just faded away.
Not so long ago you couldn’t open a paper without talk of the RFU’s financial plight making the headlines and the past presidents commissioning of a report and its findings.
Now, all that seems to have disappeared, despite a meeting between the current CEO and the past presidents a few days ago. After that meeting you might have expected at least a statement either confirming or denying the veracity of what had been printed in the papers and the Baron report, but so far – nothing.
Is there going to be a call for an SGM, if not it could look like it was just a case of a few people worried about their entitlements who have now been reassured and so the overspend and debt faced by the RFU is no longer an issue of concern and has been swept under the carpet?
Given that a number of people at the RFU have lost their jobs, it is only right and proper that a full and truthful statement is made by all parties confirming what the situation is.
Despite the RFU stating that they are now an open and transparent organisation, there is still a lot of secrecy in the workings of the Union.
Rumours of bullying , bad management, and some staff members leaving with a pocket full of money for mysterious reasons with non-disclosure agreements keeping everything under wraps, it is not a picture of an open and transparent organisation.
What is needed is an honest appraisal of where the Union is financially, particularly going into a World Cup next year that will, as always, have a negative impact on revenue and how that is liable to affect all parts of the game.
Currently it’s the bid by CVC Capital Partners, former F1 owners, for the Premiership that has everyone’s attention. Valuing the Premiership at around £500m may sound a lot but as I wrote a couple of weeks ago the debt of the Premiership clubs is around £254m and growing.
I have no doubt that a takeover by CVC would stabilise the Premiership’s losses and pay off a large part of their debt but at what cost to the rest of the game? Owning 51 per cent of the Premiership would make them all powerful in any negotiations with the Union over player release and season structure – which may lead to a weaker international team.
Some have suggested the RFU should put in a rival bid, but in truth they haven’t got that sort of money, so unless the Premiership owners were prepared to except payment in instalments over a number of years it could never happen.
There is even a suggestion that it could be run like the NFL, if owned by the RFU and clubs in partnership, with everyone making money, which to me seems a little ridiculous. The NFL has only 32 teams and is the national sport in a country with about 360m people with many funding stream including a TV deal that pays around £47m per game played.
The RFU on the other hand, have close to 2,000 clubs (24 professional/ semi professional) and is a minority sport in a country of around 70m people with the TV deal for the Premiership worth around £60,000 per game, so how can you run both organisations in the same way?
The NFL, like the Premiership is not a governing body, and unlike the RFU, doesn’t have to worry about player development or growth of the sport, funding and providing services for the amateur game and maintaining the infrastructure as a sport, they just fund themselves.
Hardly a role model for the rugby to follow if it wants to continue to grow as a global game, something which American football has tried and failed to do.
The only way to increase revenues would be to combine the earnings from RFU internationals and Premiership club games but that could result in major cuts in the sports development which is totally funded by the RFU from international match earnings.
The only thing America has to offer a potential Premiership owner whether, CVC or the RFU, is the growth of USA rugby which is slowly increasing and has shown to be an expanding market, ripe for commercial exploitation.
Any new corporate owner would first seek a ring-fence and then put in place a number of overseas games to South Africa, America and possibly China and hope to create a Champions Cup competition between champions of all world’s regional competitions.
If that happens it could undermine the RWC and reduce the amount of money World Rugby have to fund the growth of the world game, helping developing nations with facilities and equipment slowly making the sport more isolated, rather like American football.
The owners needs to think long and hard about the sale of the Premiership because, as the RFU can testify and Bath owner Bruce Craig said: “Life is about control, when ceding control, you need to be very careful. Lose control, you don’t get it back.”