CVC looking to buy shares in Pro14

[higgik]

according to The Rugby Paper yesterday, CVC are looking at buying shares in the Pro14.
Maybe the start of a British and Irish league.

 

[Don't Skip Leg Day]

I'd like this, we could have 15 teams and call it the super 15.

 

[Amiga500]

NOOOOOO.

Unions - please tell them to f**k off and never darken our door again.


CVC are bad bad bad news. Long term health of the game will suffer - regardless of whether a bit more money is pulled in at the top end. It'll stay there and you'll end up like France.



[I'd be worried about the SRU and WRU. Neither of those can see beyond $$$ flashed in their faces.]

 

[snoopy snoopy dog dog]

From Simon Thomas on twitter:
I'm hearing increasingly encouraging noises about the prospects of CVC investing in the PRO14. That could be a game-changer for our regions in terms of financial security.
https://twitter.com/simonrug/status/1102201303223160837?s=20

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

From Simon Thomas on twitter:
I'm hearing increasingly encouraging noises about the prospects of CVC investing in the PRO14. That could be a game-changer for our regions in terms of financial security.
https://twitter.com/simonrug/status/1102201303223160837?s=20

Walesonline main rugby writer though....

 

[snoopy snoopy dog dog]

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/...mpete-in-grand-final-after-cvc-deal-tt6bbbxk8

Plan for Premiership and Pro14 clubs to compete in grand final after £120m CVC deal

The private equity firm that has bought a stake in Premiership Rugby is set to acquire one in the league for the other home nations and Ireland. The move could lead to a grand final played between the winners of the two competitions.

CVC Capital Partners bought 27 per cent of the Gallagher Premiership last December for about £220 million and is poised to complete a £120 million deal for a similar share of the Guinness Pro14 within the next few weeks.

The Pro14, which is the league structure of the professional clubs in Ireland, Wales, Scotland and Italy, plus two from South Africa, has stopped negotiating with rival firms and has agreed the price, structure and terms of the sale to CVC.

This is the first step to a European/South African league. The Pro 14 and Premiership will be merged before long.

I for one think this is great for rugby. We'll end up with a Hiberno-British-South African conference and a continental European conference with fewer games but all games being of higher intensity. The club season is a mess at the moment and needs to be revamped.

Will the £120m be split evenly amongst the participants (£8.57m each) or among the 5 Unions (£24m for the FIR, IRFU, SARU, SRU, WRU)?

 

[bushytop]

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/...mpete-in-grand-final-after-cvc-deal-tt6bbbxk8



This is the first step to a European/South African league. The Pro 14 and Premiership will be merged before long.

I for one think this is great for rugby. We'll end up with a Hiberno-British-South African conference and a continental European conference with fewer games but all games being of higher intensity. The club season is a mess at the moment and needs to be revamped.

Will the £120m be split evenly amongst the participants (£8.57m each) or among the 5 Unions (£24m for the FIR, IRFU, SARU, SRU, WRU)?

Very interesting...

 

[higgik]

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/...mpete-in-grand-final-after-cvc-deal-tt6bbbxk8



This is the first step to a European/South African league. The Pro 14 and Premiership will be merged before long.

I for one think this is great for rugby. We'll end up with a Hiberno-British-South African conference and a continental European conference with fewer games but all games being of higher intensity. The club season is a mess at the moment and needs to be revamped.

Will the £120m be split evenly amongst the participants (£8.57m each) or among the 5 Unions (£24m for the FIR, IRFU, SARU, SRU, WRU)?

First, let's have a British & Irish league. Move London Irish and Cornish Pirates to Pro14, giving 16 teams in 4 groups of 4, play home and away in groups, (6 matches), and another 6 matches against teams from the other group.
Meanwhile, the Anglo League, should expand to 16 teams, adding Ealing, South Yorkshire, (Doncaster/Rotherham), Yorkshire, (Leeds), and Coventry. They play same system as above, then each team plays 4 matches v the other league.
Play off in the League, followed by Grand Final between leagues. Total weeks = 22, including 1 bye week in the regular season and a week off between national final and Grand Final. Max matches played = 20.

 

[snoopy snoopy dog dog]

Don't necessarily agree with your proposed conference split as I doubt there's enough strength in depth in England to sustain 16 clubs but agree conferences are the right way to go.

Initially we'll see two separate leagues with the winners facing off. That'll morph into the playoffs combining to declare and overall ProPremiership champion. Then we'll see teams move around the conferences. How about the current Premiership expanding to include the Welsh regions. The Pro10 then adds London Irish, 2 more SA teams and 3 teams from the US/Canadian eastern seaboard who jump from MLR.

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

English rugby can't sustain 12 teams without dragging most clubs into big debt, let alone these Championship teams that people still have a nostalgic lovin for because another Exeter might happen.
Yorkshire have just said they are not doing full time contracts.

I would love for English rugby to gut 2-4 Prem clubs, Join the pro league and have the SA teams join.
Have two leagues promotion and relegation between said leagues.
Have a U18 and U23/A league league similar thing. (Maybe for U18 not have relegation and instead groups).


But again the PRL/RFU will NOT let a English team go to Pro league unless the whole league joins.

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Cornwall and Irish would die within a season without the RFU/PRL.
They'd lose their entire academy system, for a start

 

[Al Bangor]

I own a share of the Green Bay Packers, the only publicly held NFL team. Edmonton, Saskatchewan and Winnipeg of the Canadian Football League are publicy held as well. Here's a list of fan owned sports teams around the world. Rugby teams are near the bottom of the page.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fan-owned_sports_teams#Canadian_Football

 

[higgik]

Don't necessarily agree with your proposed conference split as I doubt there's enough strength in depth in England to sustain 16 clubs but agree conferences are the right way to go.

Initially we'll see two separate leagues with the winners facing off. That'll morph into the playoffs combining to declare and overall ProPremiership champion. Then we'll see teams move around the conferences. How about the current Premiership expanding to include the Welsh regions. The Pro10 then adds London Irish, 2 more SA teams and 3 teams from the US/Canadian eastern seaboard who jump from MLR.

How about 4 Irish, 4 Welsh, 2 Scottish, 2 Italian, Cornish Pirates, London Irish, plus, (eventually both London Welsh and London Scottish), with an Anglo/African Conference of 6 SA teams, (the SR teams plus current 2 in Pro14), and 10 English teams.

 

[snoopy snoopy dog dog]

From the Times (behind the paywall and slightly edited to make sense):

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/six-nations-sold-to-cvc-capital-partners-mz6qbc282

The deal with the Pro14 is expected to be completed in October.

CVC is buying a 15 per cent stake in the commercial arm of the six nations' business. The agreed figure is more than £300 million.

The private equity firm (CVC) will pay £115 million for a 27 per cent share of the Pro14.

Assuming an equal split of funding, the FIR, IRFU, SRU and WRU will each come away with £73m (€82.5m) and SARU will get £23m (R1.3bn). That's a staggering amount of money

 

[Amiga500]

From the Times (behind the paywall and slightly edited to make sense):

Assuming an equal split of funding, the FIR, IRFU, SRU and WRU will each come away with £73m (€82.5m) and SARU will get £23m (R1.3bn). That's a staggering amount of money

Does anyone think CVC are handing it over for free?

They are getting their pound of flesh back out of the game - and it won't be good for the game.

 

[snoopy snoopy dog dog]

It's no shock that a company makes an investment and wants a return on it.

The end game is CVC think by packaging all rights together and getting the 6 Nations, Premiership and Pro 14 working together on a TV schedule which maximises live coverage will see a massive increase in media revenue.

 

[higgik]

Looks like the deal has been done
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/50453217

 

[mdaclarke]

Looks like the deal has been done
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/50453217

I was curious if they would want to exclude the South African teams, but given that South Africa is a huge TV market and the fact they are the World Champions probably means they are likely to survive?

 

[Amiga500]

Having had some time to think about it and reflect.

CVC can still fúck off and do one.

This is not a good move for the long term health of the game.

You can expect CVC to now start to marginalise the areas of the game that do not "maximize" their profit. Zebre vs. Kings? Where is the money in that? No chance of those teams getting better. Ever. So why have them in the league when there is more money in New York or Boston? Like what good rugby players ever came from Port Elizabeth*?


*this is sarcasm BTW just for those on the special bus.

 

[TRF_Olyy]

If CVC were interested in money at the expense of killing off teams then they wouldn't be putting their cash into rugby - there is barely any cash in the sport at all.