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SANZAR, based on the news released today, has gone for the money. The new structure will generate or should generate large dollops of television money outside of the SANZAR countries.
But at what cost to the rugby integrity of the tournament?
The main complaint from South African administrators and players was that the travelling component of the tournament, especially the long haul to Australia and New Zealand, handicapped the South African teams in terms of results and in tiring the players for the finals, and then for their Test aspirations.
The solution has produced more travelling, if fewer actual games for each team.
There will be issues, too, about the quality of some of the teams. The Kings, for instance, are really a second tier Currie Cup side. How can they compete against the top Australian and New Zealand sides, or even the top South African sides?
We know why this team in the tournament, though. It is due to political pressure from the South African government to have another team in Super Rugby. It was this instance that led to the SARU to insist on six South African teams and, as a consequence, a drastic redefinition of the Super Rugby format which we now see.
The interest in the tournament will depend heavily on the quality of the teams from Argentina and Japan. Both these countries have the potential to present formidable sides. And if Japan builds its Super Rugby team around the concept of the Asian Dragons, a sort of Asian Barbarians side coached by Tana Umaga, this could awaken significant interest in Asia.
Part of the interest will focus on Singapore which will host three Super Rugby games a year.
Here I see (or I think I see) the commercial underpinnings of the new format. Air New Zealand is a primary sponsor of New Zealand rugby. Air New Zealand has an interest in Virgin Australia Air which also has interests with Singapore Airlines.
There is a direct flight from South Africa to Singapore.
Japan has the player numbers and the financial heft to become a significant rugby heavyweight, on and off the field. The national side is ranked 10th in the World Rugby rankings. The 2019 Rugby World Cup tournament will be played in Japan and in 2020 Japan will host the Olympic Games, with Sevens Rugby featuring as one of the best attended events at the Games.
The lobbying for the Rugby World Cup tournament to be held in Japan was led by Dentsu, the largest advertising agency in Japan and one of the biggest in the world.
You would imagine that a lot of money is going to flow into rugby from this Japanese connection. That will be a good thing for rugby in these parts and for the broadcasting rights of Super Rugby which are currently under negotiations.
The issue, though, at what cost to the local interest of Super Rugby?
As a school boy at my convent school, the nuns used to terrify me and my mates by continually posing to us Christ’s awkward question: ‘What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and suffers the loss of his immortal soul?’
Without being overly dramatic, that question needs to be answered by the SANZAR authorities.
At face value the format they are offering diminishes the popular local derbies, although I would modify that by saying that the New Zealand players especially resented playing their New Zealand sides twice in a season, sometimes three times if they meet in finals.
But fans loved the local derbies even if some of the players did not.
Will the fans be interested in the new teams?
As I say, an Asian Dragons side particularly, laced with Samoans, Tongans and Fijians could become highly popular.
The new format does not come into force until 2016. SANZAR needs to use this time cleverly to ensure that all the teams are competitive and that there is an x-factor to the tournament with the inclusion of an Argentinian and a Japanese side.
Already there are wailings about how unwatchable this tournament format will be. It is up to SANZAR to allay these fears.
Before the first Super Rugby tournament started in 1996 there was a widespread outcry that no one would be interested in teams with names like the Brumbies, the Hurricanes and the Stormers and so on.
These fears proved to be unfounded. SANZAR needs to make sure, along with the television providers involved with presenting the tournament, that this new format will prove to be a winner for all the parties, players, fans and sponsors.
Is SANZAR up for this challenge?