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There's a decent article by Tom Farren Sr on American Rugby News concerning what he sees as the best possible way to grow the sport in the USA. I won't post it al here (just follow the link above) but the bit which caught my attention was this section:
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The idea has some merit but I think it's flawed. I'll post my opinions on an alternative to the above idea in a bit but I'd like to hear other opinions first.
In short, how would you attempt to grow the sport in the USA and North America in general?
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Local teams are what drive the American fan. City to city, across the country, people spend exorbitant amounts of money on jerseys, hats, jackets, gloves, stickers, personal seat licenses (for God’s sake!) because of their local team. Quick: name the last time you saw a USA men’s national rugby team sweatshirt. Exactly. Make teams local and build from the community.
To do that, get investors on the East Coast together and go over and talk to the Magner’s League and Guinness Premiership and establish 2-3 teams in each league â€" or just one league to start â€" and plant them in the heart of the east coast: between Washington, DC, and Boston.
Do the same thing on the West Coast with the Super 14 in SANZAR and now you have 4-9 professional, local, high level rugby teams.
The ultimate benefit of all of this is the increased skill level of rugby and the increased opportunity for our players to continue on in this great sport.
USA Rugby would still be necessary but would need to split into two, distinct but complementary, organizations.[/b]
The idea has some merit but I think it's flawed. I'll post my opinions on an alternative to the above idea in a bit but I'd like to hear other opinions first.
In short, how would you attempt to grow the sport in the USA and North America in general?