Feel Good/Improved Global Expansion rugby articles

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Post your articles here on rugbys continued global expansion, can be any positive stories from rugby players in the community to growing participation rates to big crowds, anywhere like USA or England.

 

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Articles like these http://frenchrugbyclub.com/Top-14/Top-14-2...wds-000536.html

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The continuing popularity of Top 14 has been confirmed by the announcement of record spectator figures for last season, and a burgeoning drive to ‘export’ future games during the forthcoming 2009/10 season.

This week’s general meeting of the Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR) revealed that overall attendances for 2008/9 rose by 12%, with more than 3,500,000 people watching Top 14 and ProD2 games last season.

The average attendances for Top 14 games was more than 12,000, with ProD2’s running at 4,660. One of the reason’s given for the rise in Top 14 crowds was Toulon’s presence following promotion, a fact borne out by their lofty position of third in the attendance table – behind Stade Francais and Stade Toulousain, but above champions Perpignan.

Toulon’s Stade Felix Mayol (capacity 17,000) in effect gave the Top 14 an extra 5,000 spectators per home game as they replaced demoted FC Auch Gers (capacity 12,000). The fact they also took their ‘home’ match against Stade Toulousain to Marseille’s football ground – the Stade Velodrome – for a 57,000 sell-out was an added bonus.

Top 14 Table / Top 14 Transfers / ProD2 Transfers / Top 14 Fixtures 2009/10 / Pre-season friendlies

That helped the Varois club to a highly respected third in the overall attendance table with 206,631 spectators during the season. Stade Francais were predictably top with 326,077, with their total boosted by having three ‘home’ matches held at the Stade de France. Those three games alone – against Perpignan, Stade Toulousain and Clermont Auvergne - brought in 237,746 spectators, or 75% of their season’s tally.

Stade Toulousain were second in the table with 277,839 spectators, a number swelled by holding several of their ‘home’ matches at the 32,000 capacity Stade Municipal, while Clermont were fourth with 190,622.

Champions Perpignan only managed sixth in the rankings with 166,629, a number restricted by the Stade Aime Giral’s limited capacity of 13,000. Talks remain ongoing about moving one or more of next season’s games to Barcelona, although nothing has been confirmed as yet.

The frenchrugbyclub.com forum is now back up and running. Many apologies for our absence - this was due to a few technical issues - but hopefully that is all in the past now and you can get back to debating, discussing and generally having a good ol' chin wag.

The only two clubs which saw average attendances drop were Brive (somewhat inexplicably) and Montauban (more understandably). Brive’s Stade Amédée Domenech has a current capacity of 15,000, although plans are advanced for a state-of-the-art stadium that could seat up to 25,000 people.

The good news for the LNR and Top 14 is that last season’s record numbers are almost certain to be usurped during the upcoming campaign, with more clubs outsourcing ‘home’ matches to larger stadiums. The financial benefits to the individual clubs is obvious, hence Stade Francais confirming plans for five of their matches to be hosted at the Stade de France in 2009/10. That alone could bring in nearly 400,000 spectators, with Bayonne getting a party invite this season alongside traditional crowd-pullers Stade Toulousain, Perpignan, Biarritz and Clermont Auvergne.

Plans are also advanced for their current home ground – Stade Jean Bouin, capacity 12,000 – to be knocked down and replaced with a new all-seater stadium.

They have also been granted permission by the LNR to play one of their matches (yet to be announced) in Brussels, Belgium, while even Bourgoin have expressed a hope to play a ‘home’ in Geneva, Switzerland.

In addition Toulon’s ‘home’ match against newly-promoted Racing-Metro 92 has been switched to the Stade Velodrome in week two (August 22) with early signs pointing to another financial windfall as tickets were snapped up this week.

Biarritz, meanwhile, have been granted permission to play their Basque derby with Bayonne in northern Spain on September 12, with the game due to take place at San Sebastien’s Estadio Anoeta. It also seems likely that the return match will be hosted at the same venue as the two Basque clubs seek to capitalise financially.

The Estadio Anoeta is traditionally the home ground for Spanish football team Real Sociedad and has a capacity of 32,076, considerably more than either Biarritz’s Parcs des Sports Aguilera (capacity 12,667) or Bayonne’s Stade Jean Dauger (capacity 12,000).


Biarritz hope to play several matches in San Sebastien this season – describing it as their new ‘second home’ - but full details have yet to be released.

Stade Toulousain plan to play four matches at the Stade Municipal (capacity 32,000) this season – rather than the Stade Ernest Wallon (capacity 19.500) – while Toulon hope to add a second match at the Stade Velodrome.

All this compares even more favourably when set aside attendances in French football, with Ligue 1 – the country’s premier league – reporting its lowest set of crowd figures since 2003.

That would partly explain why the LNR has agreed a 6.5% increase on television payments to clubs in both Top 14 and ProD2 this season.

In a separate development the LNR has delayed the kick-off times for matches scheduled to start at 2.30pm (for television purposes) in August. The committee decided that the games will now start at 4pm due to the excessive heat expected during August. They have further allowed referees to award one discretionary two-minute break per half for players to take on fluids.[/b]

 

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http://dailyexpress.co.uk/posts/view/14047...n-from-the-cold

THOMAS AIMS TO BRING RUSSIA IN FROM THE COLD
HOWARD THOMAS, the Englishman who is the driving force behind Russia’s bid to join rugby’s elite, has called for the closed shop that is the Six Nations to be opened up.

Thomas, who was the chief executive of Premier Rugby between 1998 and 2005, is now the vice president of the Rugby Union of Russia. Under his leadership,

Russia have risen from 24th to 16th in the world rankings and he is the first to admit they aren’t quite ready yet to be rubbing shoulders with Europe’s big guns.

But he thinks that within five years they should be challenging the Six Nations’ two poorest members – Scotland and Italy – if a relegation play- off match is introduced.

Thomas admits he would like to see the bottom club in the Six Nations face off against the winners of the
European Nations Cup, the tournament for second tier nations.

He believes that if the closed shop isn’t abolished, it could prove critical to the development of the game in the rest of Europe.

Thomas said: “To be honest, the only way rugby will really develop internationally in Europe is if we re-address the competitions.

“Yes, the holy grail of the Six Nations is a magnificent competition but the fact that it’s sealed off from the rest of the game in Europe effectively means there’s no pathway for other developing European countries to progress.

“I think it is inevitable that there will be some sort of play-off in the future between the countries in the European Nations Cup Division One and the Six Nations. But there will be opposition to that from tier one countries fearful of losing their status. If people don’t embrace that as a possibility in the future then they are being arrogant in the extreme.

“Countries only deserve to be in the best competition if they are the best and a play-off is the way to prove that.

“If Russia were to take on Scotland or Italy tomorrow, I think they would beat us. But over time that gap will reduce
and an annual play-off is the best way to test that.

“I reckon a play-off in about five years would be meaningful. I’d like to see it earlier though, because I believe it
would invigorate both competitions,” he added.

Thomas believes that the fully-professional Russian domestic competition is on a par with the English Championship, the division below the Premiership.

But he feels that it is only a matter of time before the gap closes because of the unlimited potential of a Russian rugby player.

He says the DNA make- up of Russian athletes makes them ideal rugby players and feels that if
Russia wants to become a major force in the game the rest of the world needs to watch out.

“The potential of Russian rugby players is unlimited. If you started with the genetic needs of a rugby player you would
not go far past what a Russian man can deliver.

“They are hard, fast, physical, aggressive, committed and focused.

“If Russia wants to be good at rugby then given its economic and sporting pedigree, rugby will become a major force.

“Our progress has been such we’ve now considered a ‘performance union’ by the IRB with huge potential. We convinced the IRB we know how to deliver our vision.”[/b]