Super League set for private equity sale
Super League clubs are close to selling a share of the competition to a private equity company in order to inject money into rugby league.
Sportsmail has learned that pursuing the sale, brought to the table by chief executive robert elstone, was approved at a board meeting last week with an update expected in the new year.
Super League are understood to be talking to a number of private investors, who are willing to put tens of millions into the competition in return for a share of future revenues.
The new partners will also be handed a key role in selling Super League’s next television contract amid fears that they will struggle to match the current £200million fiveyear TV deal with Sky Sports, which expires in 2021. The identity of the bidders and the size of the stake up for sale is not known.
The dramatic move by the country’s leading rugby league clubs follows a trend set recently by rugby union, where private equity has become an increasingly big player over the past year.
CVC Capital partners have bought significant shares in both the english premiership and the pro 14, and are close to completing a deal to buy 15 per cent of the Six Nations, which will give them a huge influence over club and international rugby.
rugby league has been looking at ways to increase its income and profile in a challenging economic climate, particularly in its northern heartlands, which has led to falling gates and many top players moving to australia.
The international expansion of Super League, with Toronto Wolfpack and Sonny Bill Williams (below) joining the competition next year, has created opportunities for growth which the board are eager to capitalise upon.
The next TV contract remains a concern, though, as the broadcasting landscape has altered dramatically since the current deal with Sky Sports was agreed in 2014, with the emergence of streaming services such as amazon prime Video and DaZN as major players in the market. In a worrying development for rugby league, Sky Sports have responded to a more competitive marketplace by focusing on retaining their key assets, such as domestic football and international cricket, and it is significant that their launch of specialist sports channels last year did not include one dedicated to rugby. Super League declined to comment.