Transformation is good business
TRANSFORMATION is “not a tick-box exercise” for SA Rugby, although ensuring that the policy is implemented could secure hosting rights for the 2023 World Cup that may create over 38 000 permanent or temporary jobs.
That was the word from newly-elected Saru president Mark Alexander yesterday after he was voted in unopposed at a special general council meeting in Johannesburg until the next elections in 2018.
Francois Davids was also elected as the new deputy president to step into Alexander’s previous position, where he defeated WP Rugby boss Thelo Wakefield, while Valke president Vivian Lottering won Davids’ Saru Exco seat.
Transformation has been viewed almost as a “necessary evil” in some quarters of the South African rugby landscape since unity in 1992. There has seldom been a willingness to fully embrace the concept of providing equal opportunities for people of colour on the field and in the boardrooms, and the lack of representation in rugby resulted in minister of sport and recreation, Fikile Mbalula withdrawing hosting rights for major international events.
Saru have been named as a candidate to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup, but the organisation will have to make serious progress in the coming months to sway the Eminent Persons Group to agree to recommend that the hosting rights be reinstated, so that an official final bid for the tournament can be submitted.
“Transformation for us is not a ‘tick-box’ exercise; it is a business imperative for rugby to stay vibrant and relevant as a sport in an evolving South Africa,” Alexander said in a statement yesterday.
“I’m pleased to say that we have made good progress in 2016, although we know more work needs to be done. That said, I am confident of a favourable report from the Eminent Persons Group to allow us to bid for an event that could have a tremendous, transformative impact on the lives of all South Africans.
“Our economic impact study of what a Rugby World Cup would mean to South Africa underlines the national importance of rugby delivering such a tournament to the country.
“We forecast that it would create 38 600 temporary or permanent jobs, have a direct, indirect and induced economic impact of R27.3 billion, contribute R5.7b to low-income households, bring almost 200 000 foreign tourists to South Africa and produce R1.4b in estimated tax revenues for government.
“Rugby has its challenges but there are great opportunities for the sport, and for what it can do for South Africa.”
But to reach that point, Alexander and his executive will have to attract new sponsors to the game – an issue that was highlighted at last week’s coaching indaba in Cape Town – and one possibility will be to change the structure of Saru’s organisation.
The Springbok team itself has had a sponsor this year who has signed on a tournament-by-tournament basis, having first featured during the Ireland series in June. The company extended the deal in August for the Rugby Championship and the end-of-year tour to Europe, but Saru would prefer to have a long-term sponsor in place for a number of years.
And the Super Rugby teams and provincial unions need to be a part of that picture, which is why Saru intend to separate the two, which the organisation said has resulted in proposed amendments to the constitution that are set to be tabled at the General Council meeting in December. It could see the six South African Super Rugby teams partly owned by private companies.
“We are proposing to overhaul our committee structure with the establishment of two new committees – one to focus on licensed, franchise rugby (the six Super Rugby teams), with greater equity representation, and the second to concentrate on non-franchise rugby to look after the interests of the 14 member unions,” Alexander said.
“Financial sustainability is a major focus for our membership and SA Rugby right now.”
After the Vodacom Cup was scrapped this year, there could be further changes to the domestic competitions. The historic Currie Cup failed to attract a title sponsor this season, with only two associate sponsors coming on board.
Stadium attendance has also dropped significantly around the country, and the lower-income levels have resulted in South African teams battling to hold on to their best players as the financial rewards in Europe and Japan are vastly better.
In that regard, Alexander said it was being considered to create an “independent group of high-profile individuals from South African civic society” to provide expert advice and be a sounding board.