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RFU ineptitude part 42

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Topic: RFU ineptitude part 42
Posted By: gerg_861
Subject: RFU ineptitude part 42
Date Posted: 09 Sep 2024 at 23:05
Days after announcing a massive giveaway to a cartel that has to funnel 27% of their revenue to the CVC, the RFU has to cut jobs. Again.

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/sep/09/rfu-to-axe-42-staff-a-week-after-new-264m-deal-with-premiership-rugby" rel="nofollow - https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/sep/09/rfu-to-axe-42-staff-a-week-after-new-264m-deal-with-premiership-rugby

My 7 year old couldn't run a business this poorly.



Replies:
Posted By: Paul10
Date Posted: 10 Sep 2024 at 07:34
Similarly but this isn't all on the rfu.

In this article about TV audiences and sport.

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/sep/09/euro-2024-and-olympics-fuel-summer-of-sports-tv-boom-to-buck-industry-trends" rel="nofollow - https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/sep/09/euro-2024-and-olympics-fuel-summer-of-sports-tv-boom-to-buck-industry-trends


Goes the sentence "English club rugby is in an existentially unhealthy place."


Posted By: JZSmith
Date Posted: 10 Sep 2024 at 11:08
Surely we are a long way beyond part 42?


Posted By: SK 88
Date Posted: 20 Sep 2024 at 20:05
Originally posted by gerg_861 gerg_861 wrote:

Days after announcing a massive giveaway to a cartel that has to funnel 27% of their revenue to the CVC, the RFU has to cut jobs. Again.

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/sep/09/rfu-to-axe-42-staff-a-week-after-new-264m-deal-with-premiership-rugby" rel="nofollow - https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/sep/09/rfu-to-axe-42-staff-a-week-after-new-264m-deal-with-premiership-rugby

My 7 year old couldn't run a business this poorly.

1) PRL pay over 27% of their TV revenue only.  The RFU money goes direct and unadulterated to the clubs.

2) If you think this is a "giveaway" you have no idea what it involves or are not looking at it in a good faith way.  Attitudes like this are why I think there is no amount of money we should accept for selling our souls. Whatever we agree to people complain it is too much.  The RFU now have their total control and draconian game limits.  They control the players like the Premiership do the Dual Registered ones.  How many posters think that is a healthy thing for the game?

3) The RFU being grossly over staffed at HQ has little bearing on anything, and even if you do think this money should be spent on a different part of rugby (which is fair enough) I don't see why the RFU should employ non-rugby people simply for the sake of it, which appears to be what you are advocating for by comparing rugby expenditure (albeit at a level you don't like) against jobsworths at HQ with non-jobs.


Posted By: SK 88
Date Posted: 20 Sep 2024 at 20:15
Originally posted by Paul10 Paul10 wrote:

Similarly but this isn't all on the rfu.

In this article about TV audiences and sport.

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/sep/09/euro-2024-and-olympics-fuel-summer-of-sports-tv-boom-to-buck-industry-trends" rel="nofollow - https://www.theguardian.com/sport/article/2024/sep/09/euro-2024-and-olympics-fuel-summer-of-sports-tv-boom-to-buck-industry-trends


Goes the sentence "English club rugby is in an existentially unhealthy place."

The thing is though is that is fundamentally at the door of the RFU.

They chose to spend the first decade of professionalism fighting & suing the top clubs.  They've spent the next two decades paying them off and splitting them apart from the other senior clubs to divide and rule and by hook or by crook get their ring fenced franchises they wanted back in 2002 with the "Andrew Plan". 

The RFU could have recognised that England doesn't suit regions or franchises and took on the clubs by making sure they had a competition format that was inclusive & fair (as far as it can be).  The FFR did this, LNR is constituted as it is not just because the French have more solidarity but because FFR only authorised its creation with a more egalitarian format.  That was possible from the RFU too and they chose the route of fighting then bribing the clubs.

For instance I would agree with probably 80% of the good faith criticisms of the Prem clubs on here, but where I disagree with people who think they have done this in a vacuum.  It is always worth remembering that World Rugby fined and threatened to expel the RFU for the crime of allowing TV money from Sky in 1996 to go direct to the clubs, not be washed through the RFU accounts.  And that was at a time when the RFU and club relationship was at its probably lowest.  Having to fight for your existence does force people into positions they probably wouldn't have adopted otherwise. 


Posted By: Whaa-Hoo Wilkey
Date Posted: 24 Sep 2024 at 19:46
Well, I was, some years ago, an avid poster on this excellent forum, I probably lost interest when Macclesfield tumbled, but he-ho!
Our success after winning our league, in the North West, was rewarded by the RFU by having a spell in Nat 2 West! This is what the Times thought of our reward by the caring RFU!
https://www.thetimes.com/article/abedd3f5-987d-457a-8318-3e7d788d930c?shareToken=7dfe1ed80321093e8c77714cc1b364a3" rel="nofollow - https://www.thetimes.com/article/abedd3f5-987d-457a-8318-3e7d788d930c?shareToken=7dfe1ed80321093e8c77714cc1b364a3


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May the best team on the day win


Posted By: cheshire exile
Date Posted: 24 Sep 2024 at 21:39
Very well researched piece, except that inland Camborne and Redruth are certainly not at the “pointy end” of Cornwall. But it was an insane decision to put Macc in this division, says someone who lived near Macc for 10 years and comes from the “pointy end”.


Posted By: Camquin
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2024 at 21:11
The Leonard Curtis Report into the financial state of the Premiership has been published.
You may want a stiff drink.

https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/64bd55318b46daf89b6c9e4e/66f3e16b31ad585626beab36_Leonard%20Curtis%20-%20Rugby%20Finance%20Report%202024.pdf" rel="nofollow - https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/64bd55318b46daf89b6c9e4e/66f3e16b31ad585626beab36_Leonard%20Curtis%20-%20Rugby%20Finance%20Report%202024.pdf



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Sweeney Delenda Est


Posted By: FHLH
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2024 at 21:46
Originally posted by Camquin Camquin wrote:

The Leonard Curtis Report into the financial state of the Premiership has been published.
You may want a stiff drink.

https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/64bd55318b46daf89b6c9e4e/66f3e16b31ad585626beab36_Leonard%20Curtis%20-%20Rugby%20Finance%20Report%202024.pdf" rel="nofollow - https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/64bd55318b46daf89b6c9e4e/66f3e16b31ad585626beab36_Leonard%20Curtis%20-%20Rugby%20Finance%20Report%202024.pdf


FFS ........

£311m debt
£30m season losses
7 out of 10 clubs insolvent (Net deficit £16m - £78m surplus £94m deficit)

Will be interesting listening to Sweeney at the Coventry match at Cambridge in a few weeks. Will he pick up the Q&A option?

But there's hope on the horizon apparently...


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"My father told me big men fall just as quick as little ones, if you put a sword through their hearts."


Posted By: HAVANT TONY
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2024 at 22:31
Sweeny came to Havant last season and he rambled on and on so much he started his Q&A 10 seconds before kick off !!!! 🤡



Posted By: Mark Smith
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2024 at 23:32
And it’s not much better in the sunlit uplands of France.  https://assets.lnr.fr/1/6/8/6/5/0/Rapport-CCCP-2024_24dc227bbe9d959656047208809eee81.pdf" rel="nofollow - https://assets.lnr.fr/1/6/8/6/5/0/Rapport-CCCP-2024_24dc227bbe9d959656047208809eee81.pdf


Posted By: Camquin
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2024 at 23:39
According to Tim's last Chairmail, Sweeney has realised he is washing his hair that weekend.
He is not coming.
I was not going to lunch, as I was not sure if I could keep a civil tongue.




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Sweeney Delenda Est


Posted By: FHLH
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2024 at 23:51
Interesting that the French report covers both Top14 and ProD2 as opposed to the RFU*s Premiership. However, the French report is a financial summary whereas the RFU* covers finance and looks at challenges ahead but hangs its hopes on increased gate revenue alone Cry

* see below, the report is not an official RFU document but one commissioned by The Guardian


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"My father told me big men fall just as quick as little ones, if you put a sword through their hearts."


Posted By: FHLH
Date Posted: 25 Sep 2024 at 23:52
Originally posted by Camquin Camquin wrote:

According to Tim's last Chairmail, Sweeney has realised he is washing his hair that weekend.
He is not coming.
I was not going to lunch, as I was not sure if I could keep a civil tongue.



And I as my question would have had just two words 


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"My father told me big men fall just as quick as little ones, if you put a sword through their hearts."


Posted By: Mark Smith
Date Posted: 26 Sep 2024 at 00:05
The Guardian one isn’t an RFU report, it’s been commissioned by an insolvency practitioner seemingly for PR purposes and doesn’t include any new figures. It’s just aggregating the most recent published accounts.

The French one is an official league document from the LNR. Some eye-watering losses in Top 14 and Pro D2, too.


Posted By: Paul10
Date Posted: 26 Sep 2024 at 07:44
All sports teams make losses.

I worked in F1 for years. We'd make a loss every month and that was how much the owner paid us as "sponsorship"


Posted By: rugbychris
Date Posted: 26 Sep 2024 at 08:35
Originally posted by Paul10 Paul10 wrote:

All sports teams make losses.

I worked in F1 for years. We'd make a loss every month and that was how much the owner paid us as "sponsorship"

I dont watch F1 but isn't that why there is a merry-go round of teams every other season. 

Brabham, Brawn, Lotus, Arrows, Benetton, Honda, Jaguar, Jordan etc etc

They go bust or pull out and are replaced. 

In rugby we just keep pumping money into the same failed entities and expect a different outcome.


Posted By: FHLH
Date Posted: 26 Sep 2024 at 17:29
Originally posted by rugbychris rugbychris wrote:


In rugby we just keep pumping money into the same failed entities and expect a different outcome.

and the F1 product is marketable internationally as well as having many backers (and potential) with deep pockets who stump up the costs every month Confused


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"My father told me big men fall just as quick as little ones, if you put a sword through their hearts."



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