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Andrew Mehrtens recently created a little bit of controversy with his comments about not playing South African teams and focusing on closer neighbours and regions within reasonable broadcasting hours.
He has a point, but there is more to it.
The shared sentiment from both sides of the Indian Ocean is that South Africa could break away from the Super Rugby competition, but the details haven’t truly been thought of as yet.
This talk isn’t anything new. A few South African commentators have hinted at South African teams joining in on the European circuit.
The time difference, or lack of, will allow games to be played at ‘normal’ hours, giving people a chance to watch the games, but this is a double-edged sword which I’ll write about later.
By joining the European circuit, there won’t be midnight or early morning games for South Africa. The broadcast revenue potential can be astronomical but it requires an already stretched European season to accommodate teams from the south and for the long-haul travel.
South Africa is already accustomed to long flights but I doubt that many European teams would favour an 11-12 hour flight for a game of rugby.
The Australasian teams (New Zealand and Australia) will then battle between themselves and try to invite the Pacific nations and Japan.
The cash cow to fill the void of South Africa would be Japan as there is money there, but I cannot guess how much of it would be shared.
The broadcast of rugby in Japan is sad, to say the least, so the ‘company’ teams may have to front some of the cost. Modern professional sport relies on broadcast revenue, so having a limited broadcast audience could hurt competitions financially.
Mehrtens also went on to say that the interest in watching South African teams has waned. This is partly true. The entire competition is suffering this disinterest.
The fat cats at the top of SANZAR have the belief that if they expand the competition, it will increase the cash flow. But too much a good thing is bad for you.
The uniqueness and aura of a match has been lost as it has been assimilated into a league format – a guaranteed match almost every weekend for 10 months (referring to the Southern Hemisphere).
The ‘special occasion’ feel has been lost and now games are no more than background noise for a barbecue or drinks at a bar. What happened to the ‘event’ of a rugby match? The aggressive expansion of the league has given us too much to watch and we have lost interest.
It’s all good to try and split an established competition for reasons of lack of interest, but there are other problems that need to be addressed first.
Join The Roar rugby editor Christy Doran, former Wallaby Matt Toomua and a cast of regular and special guests as they look at the biggest issues in the game on The Roar Rugby Podcast. If you’re looking for great odds on the next game check out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.