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As most of the world’s domestic competitions begin to commence, we can look forward to a feast of rugby. But has it all become a bit too much, and is the game suffering as a consequence?
The reality now is that the game is professional, and the roots of both rugby union and rugby league can trace their origins back to the tension between amateurism and professionalism in the late 1800s.
The Rugby Football Union strictly enforced amateur status on the game. There was constant political unrest as some clubs, such as Leeds, compensated their players for missing work and were then subsequently fined by the RFU.
This was despite the fact that the 1888 England team which toured Australia was reported to have been paid.
These tensions reached a head in 1895 when representatives of some Northern clubs formed the Northern Rugby Football Union.
This new body allowed payments to be made to players, and is seen by many to be the genesis of the sport of Rugby League.
Although initially their clubs played under “union” rules, eventually changes would occur, most notably reduction of teams to thirteen men, and the implementation of the play the ball law.
For years, the RFU took strong actions against these breakaways, and for the next one hundred years, as new organisations within rugby union were formed, namely the IRB and other national bodies, the game would remain fiercely amateur, despite the best attempts of some countries like France to do otherwise.
As we all know, things were a lot different then.
Tours formed the backbone of international programs, and most Test teams would play no more than six or seven Test matches a year, and often would play less.
But under increased threats of professional sports (ironically, rugby league), the IRB, now the game’s governing body, would declare in 1995 that the sport would become fully open, and removed any restrictions on either payments or benefits to the players.
So suddenly rugby was big business, and a business must continually drive to increase their numbers. A budget, the classic backbone of all money driven operations, must seek to increase year after year. So it has become with our rugby calendar.
But has it become too much for the most ardent of supporters?
A phenomenon occurred of late that truly confounded me. There were empty seats at a British and Irish Lions Test match in South Africa, a country that is truly passionate about the game.
And this was for the rarest sight in the rugby world – a Lions team.
The All Blacks, considered the greatest crowd puller in the international rugby world, will play their 450th test match this weekend against the Springboks.
Officially, New Zealand played their first Test match in 1903. Their 225th test match (the halfway point) was a 3-16 loss to France in Nantes in 1986. The first half of their international matches was played in 83 years.The second half has been played in the next 23 years.
It is just as staggering for other international countries. England, essentially the first international rugby team, played their first match against Scotland in 1871.
In the next 100 years, they would play 313 test matches.
From 1972 to the current day, the Red rose of England has run out onto a rugby field for a Test match 305 times.
Growth, of course, is paramount, especially to our game, with prime assets like the Pacific Islands, Argentina, Asia and the United States needing capital and resources to become genuine and regular practitioners at the top level.
But at some point, somewhere, things may need to be scaled back.
For while opportunity and money is out there to be had, the financial success of the big unions will eventually regress if the market becomes so convoluted and saturated that we get a bit sick of it.
I am a rugby tragic, and am excited for every game that is on the immediate horizon. But will it always be this way, and is it this way for all of us?
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.