Running Rugby - 10 Latest News

Rhino Named as Official Supplier for 2013 Australia Tour

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 17:06:08 -0500

Rhino, the world’s leading supplier of contact and training equipment for rugby, announced today that it has been appointed as an official supplier to The British & Irish Lions 2013 Australia Tour.

As for the Lions 2009 Tour to South Africa, Rhino has moreover a dual role – the Somerset based company is to supply not only the training equipment the squad will use at each training venue in the UK & Ireland, Hong Kong and Australia, but also the official training ball and commemorative ball collection for the Tour.

Rhino CEO Reg Clark expressed delight at the re-appointment: ‘we are thrilled to once more be a part of The Lions family for this Tour and are pleased to note the continuity in terms of personnel and other Tour sponsors. We are looking forward very much to working with them all again. Heritage is a major part of Rhino’s brand and it is hard to find a rugby entity more imbued with this than The Lions.’

Tour manager Andy Irvine, himself a legendary British & Irish Lions player from the 1974, 1977 and 1980 Tours commented: ‘The British & Irish Lions are delighted to welcome Rhino Rugby back as an official supplier for the 2013 Tour. The quality of their equipment is well known and was much appreciated by the 2009 Tour management and players. Rhino is well known for being a cutting edge developer of innovative new products and is additionally now an established performance ball manufacturer.’

Today’s appointments were announced in the Attlee Room of the House of Lords at a reception hosted by Liberal Democrat peer Lord Dholakia.

France vs Ireland: Who is Liable?

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:23:23 -0500

Katie Jude, Legal Assistant at Onside Law, (specialising in the sports industry) lends her expert opinion on the legal implications of the cancelled RBS Six Nations fixture between France and Ireland:

The RBS Six Nations experienced one of its most difficult weekends in its history on Saturday 11th February, as the widely anticipated France vs Ireland fixture was postponed due to a frozen playing surface. With the atmosphere building in the Stade de France, the 80,000 strong crowd were devastated by the news which arrived minutes before the kick off that the game would not be going ahead. The game has been rearranged for 4th March at 3pm at the same venue.

The French Rugby Federation (FFR) is responsible for the condition of the pitch, one of the very few European stadiums of its size not to have under soil heating. The responsibility of the game itself in terms of operations and protocols pertaining to whether the match should go ahead or not is with the Six Nations board. Naturally, it was in the organisers’ interest for the game to go ahead, as was the case with the fans and players, however officials and coaches of both teams were discussing, in the lead up to kick off, the safety of playing. Being an evening match temperatures were expected to drop as the game went on and the welfare of the players proved to be paramount to the decision.

The FFR have now agreed with the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) that fans can claim a full refund for the cost of their ticket if claimed by 23rd February. Should fans wish to attend the rescheduled event, they can do so with their existing ticket however entry will not be permitted unless the same match ticket is produced. Despite the efforts of the IRFU to reimburse travelling Irish fans, the costs of accommodation and travel will not be covered; the decision of which lies with travel and hospitality companies used by fans as well as the insurance they have taken out, if any. Insurance is a key mitigating measure for sports events because of the significant impact cancelations and/or postponements can have given their short term/one off nature. Fans here will be reimbursed the cost of tickets but the other losses will have to be covered through insurance policies.

Sponsors are unlikely to receive any compensatory measures as the match has not been cancelled, merely postponed. Thus, they are likely to still benefit so long as their rights remain in place at the rescheduled event.

However, postponement has further implications for an event of this size and reputation. The impact on merchandising can be significantly high as products branded with the original event date will be redundant if an event is rescheduled. Product makers will need to provide new stock for the rescheduled match.

The Ryder Cup is an interesting example of how these problems were mitigated. The 2001 event was postponed until 2002 as a result of the 9/11 attack, however they opted to maintain all of the associated branded products with 2001 logos so there were no significant losses for stakeholder investors as the merchandise was still relevant as everything remained the same, even though in reality the year had changed.

The impact is similar for hospitality, as boxes and other forms of corporate sweeteners would have been allocated for that particular date, the rescheduling of such commercial ventures will hit the pockets of major corporate investors of the event as the food and corporate sweeteners are wasted.

Where the rights holders stand will depend on the agreement with the event organiser and whether or not there is, and the wording of (whether it includes adverse weather or not), a Force Majeure clause, which could state that rights holders bear no liability if the postponement is due to an “act of god” out of their control. Although, for a Force Majeure clause to work effectively, the parties involved would have to take reasonable steps to restrict the damage and it could be debated whether the parties acted reasonably given the time of cancellation.

As far as the governing bodies associated with a postponed event are concerned, it is likely they will have insurance cover to compensate for any losses incurred, such as refunds of tickets.

An interesting point to consider will be that it was the referee, David Pearson, who called off the match due to safety concerns. The referees of such matches have a duty of care to the players and therefore have to consider their welfare, as evidenced by Smoldon v Whitworth where a referee was held liable for injuries of a player because he did not follow safety procedures whilst supervising a scrum. Insurers will often fight the nature of the cancellation and argue that an independent third party should have made the decision but it is important to consider that sport is unique because the only true experts as to whether a postponement is necessary are the rights holders (and insured party) themselves.

Sun, Sea, Sand and Sevens on the South Coast

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 12:40:14 -0500

If you think all sevens tournaments are the same, think again. The fifth Bournemouth Sevens Festival, which will be staged in the Dorset resort on the first weekend in June, aims to build on the success of the first four events in combining competitive rugby with entertainment and music on a grand scale.

Founded by Roger Woodall (pictured below) in 2008, who continues to be the festival director, this multi-faceted event has become a staple for anyone who enjoys their rugby but also wants to take part in a massive weekend party by the seaside. After just four years it has already been coined as “rugby’s Glastonbury”.

Founder: Roger Woodall

“I remember sitting on the beach in Bournemouth in 2007, just as we were entering the recession, and thinking that I had been to Dubai and Hong Kong but we had nothing similar in the UK,” Woodall tells Running Rugby.

“My idea was to combine sport with a music festival. At Dubai Sevens and many of the other sevens festivals around the world the party takes place in the stadium but I wanted the party to feature in and outside of the stadium. At the Bournemouth Sevens Festival we have loads of entertainment and music, DJs and bands - it’s like nothing else in the UK.

“In year one, we thought we might get 20-30 teams – we got 96! It was quite daunting so we realised that we needed to get someone to run the tournament and hired Peter Tanner, who organises the tournament of the renowned National Schools Sevens. We trialled netball in 2008 and we had 16 teams. Now the festival plays host to a staggering 200 rugby and 100 netball teams. We are the largest rugby, netball and music festival in the world!”

Netball was introduced in 2008

A total of 5,000 rugby and netball players take part in the event, which is owned and managed by Diamond Sporting Group Ltd, a company just over a year old of which Woodall is managing director. Woodall would not reveal any figures when asked by Running Rugby but he admits that the concept is more than covering its “five figure” costs, which include hiring 250-300 staff on site over the weekend, including 100 referees and 140 bar staff.

Although billed as an event for the people, Bournemouth gives a nod to the elite with a VIP Celebrity Lounge which can hold 500 people and a VIP Arena that can cater for 1,500. Commercial headway has been made with Nintendo signed up as title sponsors for 2012, Woodall says the corporate growth of Diamond replicates the financial success of the event.

VIP's Nick Abendanon, Danny Care and Olly Barkley

“The Diamond Sporting Group now has eight full-time members of staff but back in 2008 the Bournemouth Sevens Festival was put on by just my wife and me,” Woodall recalls. “It was really hard work and we even had to re-mortgage our house to pay for it.

“It has put Bournemouth on the map and has had an economic impact for the local area of £1.5 million. We get media coverage from the BBC, ITV, Sky Sports and national newspapers are talking about covering the festival this year.

“We are growing extremely quickly; the festival draws crowds of 20,000 over the Bank Holiday Weekend and camping figures have soared from 600 to 3,000 in just four years. The demand is there and people have to book or they will be disappointed. We are getting visitors from France, Norway and Dubai this year.”

The advent of rugby sevens becoming an Olympic sport adds extra impetus to the operation. Any major sevens event held in this country suddenly has added importance as the search for new talent that could ultimately compete in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 steps up. That, though, is not Bournemouth’s raison d’etre.

“The announcement of rugby sevens becoming an Olympic sport was fantastic news for us,” admits Woodall. “We identified that sevens would explode around 2007/2008 and aimed to put on a really good show. We have no interest in becoming an IRB World Series event, we have good players on show on the main pitch but it’s about having fun and getting away for a weekend – it’s how we want to keep it. We will have 10 bands and 10 DJs this year plus loads of celebrities attending this year’s festival.”

Bournemouth looks like the place to be for rugby-playing revellers, come the beginning of June.

Beer and RL Clubs Create a Heady Brew

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 14:49:31 -0500

They say that beer and rugby go together, but how valuable is the link between ale and the oval ball? Rugby league in the UK has traditionally had a strong relationship with the brewing industry, notably through a sponsorship of the top division in the pre-Super League days.

The club bar is the place for players and supporters to unwind after a hard-fought 80 minutes and for the administrators to press the flesh of their opposite numbers, but many clubs see it more than just a meeting place. This is a facility which can be utilised to boost club funds and harden the relationship with sponsors.

The most high profile example is St Helens signing a five-year deal with Robinsons Brewery for the Stockport-based business to become official drinks supplier at the new 18,000-seater Langtree Park stadium. The pristine facilities were a leveraging point for Robinsons but the plentiful opportunities to launch a new beer, `Saints Gold`, at a captive market were a deal-maker. It was Saints providing the marketing space that proved really attractive.

“St Helens is a rugby league-orientated town, they are passionate about the sport, and the agreement allows us to have a free trade account with Saints to get our brands into the stadium,” John Robinson, brands manager at Robinsons Brewery told Running Rugby. “At the Salford game we sold 60 kegs of Saints Gold (each keg produces 72 pints) for a total of 4,320 pints.

“We provide all the equipment required to operate the bars. If the club had not moved to the new stadium I doubt we would have got involved.”

Robinson says that the brewery has ambitions to further their involvement in the sport, seeing rugby league as a perfect vehicle to promote their product.

“Rugby league, and union, are more civilised sports than football,” he adds. “Fans are allowed to drink beer at the match, while at a football game they can only drink at half-time. Rugby fans can bring their beer into the stadium and this gives us more mileage.

“St Helens is a big account for us; it is the first time we have got involved with a stadium like this. It is us putting our toe in the water and if it works out and is profitable then we may look at other grounds. We can give it more attention than the big breweries could.”

In the community game there are innovative ideas to use the bar for fund-raising. Wigan St Judes, the club which developed the likes of Sean Long and Kris Radlinski, will next month host a beer festival for the second successive year at Morton Avenue.

Wigan St Judes Beer Festival

The initiative was developed by the U12 section, as they plan to send the team to the south of France next year to play in tournaments and appear in a curtain-raiser for a Catalans Dragons Super League game. Wayne Reddy, a father of one of the players, came up with the idea and the event looks set to involve 11 breweries offering over 20 guest beers.

“We ran the first one last year and it was trial and error,” says Reddy. “I remembered that there used to be a beer festival at the local Labour club and it used to be packed and an ex-boss of mine is a member of the local Round Table that runs a beer festival every January in aid of disabled children. I thought why not use the bar for our own event to raise funds for the tour. We have a target of £5,000.”

The local Prospect Brewery have offered the club a discounted rate and help with the bar and Reddy has contacted a drinks dealer in Wigan who is organising beers from other providers. Reddy says that no other clubs in the region put on such an event. Good ideas only come to fruition at community level through volunteers putting in the time and effort.

“I’m not surprised others don’t do it as it takes so much work,” he adds. “We have to get scaffolding organised in the bar, for instance. It’s about finding the people who can do these things, finding sponsors and getting people through the door otherwise we will run at a loss.”

The most visible connection between Co-operative Championship club Hunslet Hawks and Leeds Brewery comes from the company logo adorning the club shirt and the naming rights of a pre-season friendly. This year’s edition of the traditional duel for the Lazenby Cup with Super League giants Leeds Rhinos was backed by the brewers, who provided a new prize after the original trophy was lost.

There is also a community aspect to the partnership, though, with Leeds Brewery and Hunslet, which is now run by a Supporters Trust, helping to secure the future of a local institution. A Grade 2 listed pub, "The Garden Gate", was saved from closure by Leeds Brewery in 2010 and Hunslet now play an active role at the hostelry.

“Leeds Brewery purchased it and we established a relationship with the landlord to use The Golden Gate for our weekly club meetings,” says Hunslet director Gareth Evans. “It was a policy of the Supporters Trust to engage the club more in the community and make use of the relationship with the brewery. The Golden Gate is right in the heart of our community and we want our fans to support it.

“We are also looking at other angles to use the partnership, we want to utilise them, and they can utilise us, without monetising. We are looking at the suppliers for the Phoenix Bar in the ground and are asking Leeds Brewery for advice. We are also investigating offering away fans pre-match meals at The Golden Gate.”

For further information on the Wigan St Judes beer festival contact Wayne Reedy on 07921 805045

IRFU Considering World Cup Bid

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 12:49:31 -0500

The Sunday Independent has revealed that the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) are considering a bid for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

Philip Browne, the chief executive of the IRFU confirmed to the newspaper that it was something they are looking into but political support would be crucial.

“It's something that we've looked at in the past and coming back from New Zealand (from the 2011 Rugby World Cup) and seeing what they were able to do there, we said ‘let's have a look at it again’,” Browne said. “So that's all we're doing: having a think about it. It's a question ultimately of whether the government wants to get involved in it or not. If they don't want to get involved in it then it doesn't happen.”

The Independent believes that Leo Varadkar, Ireland’s minister for transport, tourism and sport is keen to support the bid. A spokesman from the department commented: “We already have the stadiums and infrastructure for such a competition... and the 2011 Rugby World Cup proved small countries can hold such an event.”

What may hinder the IRFU’S chances of getting political support would be the fact that the International Rugby Board requires the host country of the Rugby World Cup to commit a significant hosting fee, which is believed to be in the region of €115 million.

Wasps Edge Closer to New Owners

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 12:22:46 -0500

London Wasps have released a statement confirming that the club is in ‘advanced stages of discussions’ with four parties interested in buying the Wycombe-based outfit.

Steve Hayes, the current owner of Wasps, announced that he was looking to sell the club back in October. Stating that: “A new owner may be the best way to build on the groundwork and opportunities he has laid down for Wasps for an exciting and wider future.”

Hayes took ownership of the club in 2008 and in the past three seasons has piloted a number of innovative ideas in the sport introducing an annual St George’s Day Game at Twickenham which has attracted almost 100,000 supporters over two seasons, and taking the first ever competitive domestic fixture overseas, showcasing the game to a global audience in Abu Dhabi.

Wasps have not disclosed the names of the interested parties, however they have stated that they are all financially capable of completing a deal and supporting the club effectively going forward.

No preferred party has yet been selected but the Club is confident that the process is now nearing conclusion.

The Rugby Paper is No.1

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 13:32:54 -0500

The Rugby Paper, the weekly Sunday newspaper covering rugby union from national teams and Premiership rugby level down to grass roots, is today confirmed by the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) as the number one rugby union title in the UK and Ireland (based on actively purchased copy sales per year).

The ABC confirms a weekly average sales figure of 17,792. This equates to approximately 925,000 actively purchased copies per year, nearly double that of the nearest competitor on an annualised basis. This equates to a Retail Sales Value (RSV) of £1.4million per year.

David Emery, managing director of Greenways Publishing, the publishers of The Rugby Paper commented, “Like our other publication, The Non-League Paper, we offer unrivalled coverage of the game from the grass-roots up to elite rugby, and we think that appeals to a lot of passionate and dedicated players and fans of the sport. I’m delighted we are now officially confirmed as the UK and Ireland’s number one rugby union title.”

Neil Wooding, responsible for trade marketing and partnership development, adds, “The Rugby Paper, along with growing their circulation, have also been growing advertising… having secured our first ABC figure, we look to capitalise on this further. For immediate opportunities, Media Agencies and advertisers should get in touch to maximise their press advertising during the Six Nations campaign.”

David Emery adds, “Greenways Publishing are a growing sports media company who are passionate about sport and we look forward to adding to our media portfolio Any interested parties should contact Neil in the first instance to explore opportunities.”

WRU Make Key Sponsorship Appointments

Thu, 16 Feb 2012 12:33:52 -0500

The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) has made two senior appointments in roles aimed at strengthening ties with major corporate stakeholders.

Simon Rowe (pictured on the left) is promoted to head of sponsorship after three years managing key accounts for high profile clients including Under Armour, Thomas Cook Sport, SWALEC and the Principality Building Society. While Mark Rollings (pictured on the right) joins as sponsorship account manager. Rollings was business development manager for SiteServ.

Rowe, a fluent French-speaker, brings over 10 years experience to his new role, having previously worked for sports marketing management agency, World in Motion, managing the contracts of professional rugby players in France.

Based at the Millennium Stadium, Rowe manages a team of three sponsorship specialists charged with delivering the commercial rights of existing WRU partners.

Rollings brings experience working with major commercial brands on a range of mass participation sporting events.

“This is an exciting time for Welsh rugby and I’m really looking forward to leading a team of experienced and dynamic individuals to deliver the contracts of the Welsh Rugby Union’s commercial partners, whilst expanding our already fantastic commercial portfolio,” said Rowe

“Our sponsors are full of passion for Welsh rugby and our account managers know how important it is to retain the key stakeholders that make a huge financial contribution to the development of the game.

“The WRU is a great place to work and with the new energy and experience of the sponsorship team at the moment, I’m sure there are great times ahead for our commercial partners.”

The WRU entered the current financial year with renewed deals with Under Armour, SWALEC, Thomas Cook, Guinness, SEAT, Ticketmaster and Trinity Mirror.

Six Nations Produces a Mouth-Watering Feast

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:26:04 -0500

Roy Keane was famously not a fan of the “prawn sandwich brigade” but to the governing bodies of the Six Nations the frequenters of the ubiquitous glass-fronted hospitality boxes are a vital source of income.

“Behind ticket sales, broadcasting contracts and sponsorship, hospitality is the fourth biggest revenue earner for the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU). It’s a big factor delivering significant numbers,” Craig Maxwell, the Millennium Stadium head of sales and marketing, tells Running Rugby

Kitchen staff at the Millennium Stadium

Maxwell would not reveal the actual figures involved but explained how the positioning of the fixtures in the calendar has a dramatic effect on business.

“Kick-off times are a key factor in the success of the stadium’s hospitality and retail offer,” he says. “Sunday’s Wales-Scotland match saw a 20 per cent fall compared to the level of business that would be expected on a Saturday. People don’t make a day of it as much as they do on a Saturday.

“One of the major plus points of the stadium is that it is in the city centre, but for food and beverage (F&B) sales this can actually be a negative as in February the big, cold vast spaces which are the concourses may not be as attractive as a city centre pub. The choice in the city is huge, everything from fine dining to traditional pubs to gastro pubs.

“For us a Friday night is the best kick-off time for F&B in the stadium, as more people come in direct from work and don’t stop off outside – last season’s Wales-England match was our most lucrative match ever.”

The Millennium Stadium’s caterers operate match day hospitality in its 123 suites and five lounges, working to the stadium’s full-time hospitality manager, hospitality sales manager and hospitality coordinator. The quantities of food and drink are mind-boggling (see table below) and up to 800 staff are involved on match day. It’s a different market to other sold-out events staged at the Millennium but the legion of rugby fans looking to enjoy themselves, win or lose, create an extraordinary set of figures.

A coorporate box at the Millennium Stadium.

The 2009 Take That concert at the ground saw 18,000 glasses of Pimms and 10,000 alcopops sold. Last Sunday’s Wales-Scotland clash may have seen a relatively low level of trade but there were still over 60,000 pints of beer drunk, not including those consumed in the hospitality boxes.

The Six Nations fixtures come out well over a year in advance, giving the various venues plenty of time to construct their hospitality packages. Many may assume that the demand is so great that not much thought needs to go into these offers but, as Maxwell explains, they are wrong.

“Catering is a consistent product, hospitality is far more structured,” he says. “We launch packages around key points in the calendar – during the previous Six Nations, summer tours and the autumn internationals. We look at historic data and consumer trends to offer the best price.

“There is a core market for hospitality – 60-65 per cent is repeat business. For the forthcoming Wales-France game the tickets sold out pre-Christmas and the hospitality followed three to four weeks later. We will have 3,000 covers for that match.”

With Six Nations tickets the hottest in town, and the social aspect being the very essence of these occasions, Maxwell says action had to be taken to prevent hospitality revenue that is ploughed back into the game in the Principality via the WRU being siphoned away by competitors seeking their own little goldmine.

Fine dining on match day.

“Hotels and restaurants in the city were buying match tickets and then offering packages of £299 for food, wine, drinks and tickets,” adds Maxwell. “They were in direct competition with us. It was a big issue as they were effectively profiteering on the back of us. So we developed a hospitality scheme where three companies – Events International, The Vale Hotel and Viking Hospitality – offer hospitality in the city (on behalf of the WRU). For Wales-France we will have 1,500-2,000 covers outside the stadium by this means.”

Some matches are more lucrative than others and the stadium has a grading system for each Wales fixture based on its popularity for hospitality bookings. The only attraction outside the tournament to compete with a Six Nations match is when the All Blacks visit Cardiff – the world champions are placed in the same ‘Tier A’ bracket as England, France and Ireland. Scotland are joined by Italy, Australia and South Africa in ‘Tier B’ with the rest of the world in ‘Tier C’.

“Four years ago the offer was the same for every match but that became bored and tired,” Maxwell explains. “We looked to offer new experiences. For Wales v England we offer fine dining – champagne and three to four courses - while for Italy and Scotland there is some fine dining but there is more of an informal atmosphere. We like to be flexible and if people want to they can upgrade. We bring a flavour of the opposition. For Scotland, for instance, we have whisky tasting and bagpipes to offer an authentic experience. “

The Six Nations continues to thrive. The southern hemisphere equivalent, now entitled The Rugby Championship, can point to a higher on-field quality but in terms of commercial value off the field there is no contest. The Europeans win hands-down.

Wales v Scotland – Millennium Stadium, February 12 2012

Hospitality Statistics

Hospitality Covers	1,927 meals served
Bottles of wine	550
Chocolate Rugby Balls	1,900
Old Gloucester Spot Pork	150 kg
Pints of Milk	500
Welsh cakes	500

Retail Statistics

Pints of Beer	60,944
187.5ml bottles of wine	2,471
Hot Drinks	5,000
Pies	3,068
Hot Dogs	2,856

Mark Evans - Developing Home-grown Talent by Quota

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 12:30:24 -0500

Much has been written over the years as to the optimum number of teams that should operate in the highest echelon of English rugby union. You can make a strong argument for fourteen (to maximise national coverage), twelve (it gives a degree of stability with only one team relegated) or eight /ten (to improve the playing strength of each team). But as for a serious discussion concerning the principle of an English dominated player roster as opposed to a multi-national competition –can’t recall one.

In other countries (Wales, Ireland, Italy, SANZAR) there are formal or informal quotas on the number of foreign players allowed to play and/or offered a playing contract by a team; largely because the national unions have a controlling interest. Even within the EU countries, such as Ireland and Italy, there are informal “gentleman’s agreements” which see Treviso being predominantly Italian and Leinster only including the odd non-Irish player. Free movement of labour within the single market does not extend to the Pro 12.

However in England and France the participants in the elite leagues are privately owned and not so constrained by the governing body. Sure there have been periodic bouts of agonising from various commentators – you may remember the late nineties paucity of English fly halves playing in the Premiership. But in terms of contributing to the essence of the Aviva Premiership and the Top 14 does it matter?

If you believe one of the functions of a domestic league is to produce a certain number of players for the national team then clearly a quota system makes sense. Indeed if there are only a maximum of five professional teams (true for every country except England and France) then you really have very little choice. However there may be other advantages – sponsors looking for a national product sometimes prefer home grown talent playing for their hometown club. In terms of building a fan base there can be a special connection between supporters and local players which can drive revenues. In theory the clubs can sometimes reduce player costs and turnover, so long as they don’t start to bid against each other for the fixed number of suitably talented local players.

In terms of playing standards overseas players can improve standards, although this is not a given. World class players from elsewhere have enhanced the English and French leagues over the years, but they have been accompanied by any number of journeymen. You could make the argument that the two biggest markets should be using their economic clout to maximise the number of their own players who play professionally rather than acting as a training base for assorted Argentinians, Samoans and Georgians.

Is the league itself diminished if foreigners dominate the Toulon team or if Gloucester were to have no core of local players? Is there a level of penetration beyond which the leagues start to lose a vital connection with their own supporters? Perhaps the two countries have big enough rugby economies to accommodate the requirements of their own national teams and yet still make room for hundreds of teammates hailing from more distant shores. However if the number of teams were to be reduced significantly at some point this would no longer be an option. Then a basic but fundamental question would have to be answered –exactly how many full time professional rugby players do England or France actually need?

marke@capacityconsulting.co.uk

Read more expert articles from Mark Evans here:

Searching for a Stadium

Is French Club Rugby a Bubble Waiting to Burst?

Whiter the Championship