Is Rugby Professional In Japan?

[Jayatron]

Just finished watching a video on Jerry Collins arrest in Japan, which of course is a very strange affair indeed. However the video that I watched said that rugby in Japan is part amateur with a mere gravy train for former internationals.

Check 7 minutes 20 seconds - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38zYVNiyhY8&feature=player_embedded#!

However this is far from my understanding of rugby in Japan. Looking at videos of SBW in Japan there are big crowds and of course very big money!! I also befriended Todd Clever on facebook and he is always putting up photos of him playing rugby in big stadiums and decent crowds.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDW3r1FglWw - Sonny Bill Williams.

On top of this I found an article published by the RFU about Japanese rugby which says that rugby for the most part rugby is professional, with some players being hired by the company and then released to play.

http://www.rfu.com/takingpart/coach...journal/2006/1stquarter/rugby20in20japan.ashx

Can anyone share any light on this?

 

[Nielsch]

Well, after browsing some clips on YouTube I can say that a lot of Japanese teams draw big crowds and are (probably) fully professional teams. It just seems that Collins' team (Yamaha Jubilo) or rugby isn't very popular in wherever it is they play.

 

[nickdnz]

It wasn't especially good reporting if it was the Campbell live clip. Most players from my knowledge are employees of the companies - but it's certainly not as amature as that clip made out. There were like 8 people on a hill from memory - when in actual fact most games do have thousands in attendance probably similar to the ITM Cup - some teams get significantly more.

 

[Nielsch]

It wasn't especially good reporting if it was the Campbell live clip. Most players from my knowledge are employees of the companies - but it's certainly not as amature as that clip made out. There were like 8 people on a hill from memory - when in actual fact most games do have thousands in attendance probably similar to the ITM Cup - some teams get significantly more.

A lot of matches draw thousands of people to the stadium, but it seems like the franchise Collins was playing for isn't popular at all. Their stadium is almost always empty. However this is not in line with matches from other teams.

 

[Hinato]

The Top League is a semi-amateur championship. Half the number of clubs are employees. Most of them do not play with their team but with one reservation. They do not evolve in the Top League. Others are professionals (all foreigners) and Japanese numbers (including international), the image of Akihito Yamada (Panasonic Wild Knights) for example. For the rest, you must not forget that this is a league that attracts less corporate crowd for the finals academics. It takes an average of 5,000 spectators where a final university attracts 30,000 spectators and attracted 60,000 in the 80s. This is due to the fact that these clubs do not attract many people as spectators outside their employees. A non-corporate club as Kamaishi Sea Waves, should he get in the Top League next year and attract a crowd larger (10 000 persons possible) while the club is located in a small town.

 

[TRF_Cymro]

It wasn't especially good reporting if it was the Campbell live clip. Most players from my knowledge are employees of the companies - but it's certainly not as amature as that clip made out. There were like 8 people on a hill from memory - when in actual fact most games do have thousands in attendance probably similar to the ITM Cup - some teams get significantly more.

Yep, the Japanese players tend as you said Nick to be employees of the company that they are playing for getting time off to train as professionals whilst also working for the company, with the pro's they tend to be the opposite and just train and play.

I'm sure Hinato will know more.

 

[sigesige00]

Yes, Japan's RU Top League teams are not fully independent, but company teams. And University teams (particularly Waseda, Meizi/Meiji, Keio) were very popular. It can be said that the popularity of College Rugby prevented the growth of professional Rugby.

 

[Jayatron]

So import players and full Japanese internationals are fully professional but other squad players are part time. Then the question is how part time is part time? Any player that competes with or against Sonny Bill Williams, Todd Clever and recently announced Stephen Donald have to train to a high level. In the RFU article it appears that the Japanese mindset to training is very high which could mean fully pro to many other European and Southern Hemisphere could equal to part time to Japanese players. Also, how much work do they do in their respective companies? Perhaps it is like collage football in America, which is pretty much full time players who dabble in education?

Again from the video's it appears that crowds are much larger than 5,000. Any links on stats?

 

[tenpm]

Attendance numbers in the 2012-13 season from http://www.top-league.jp/index.html

Yamaha Jubilo home games
Yamaha Jubilo 25-19 NTT Shining Arcs: 5528
Yamaha Jubilo 52-8 Kyuden Voltex: 3211
Yamaha Jubilo 28-35 Kintetsu Liners: 4951
Yamaha Jubilo 39-35 Suntory Sungoliath: 5578
Average: 4817

Round 13
Ricoh Black Rams 21-46 Yamaha Jubilo: 5362
Panasonic Wild Knights 44-14 Canon Eagles: 5299
Fukuoka Sanix Blues 36-55 NEC Green Rockets: 1989
Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers 29-43 Suntory Sungoliath: 7134
Toshiba Brave Lupus 50-30 Kintetsu Liners: 6654
Toyota Verblitz 31-24 NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes: 6167
Kyuden Voltex 27-28 NTT Shining Arcs: 3713
Average: 5188

***le play-offs
Suntory Sungoliath 38-19 Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers: 6166
Panasonic Wild Knights 8-20 Toshiba Brave Lupus: 9430
Suntory Sungoliath 19-3 Toshiba Brave Lupus: 13158


Note that "Yamaha Jubilo home games" means games played in Yamaha stadium, full capacity of 16879 people.

League matches seem to average ~5000 people, while play-offs attract larger crowds.

 

[sigesige00]

Is it possible to make Rugby professional in the style of Scotland and Ireland?

 

[Big Ewis]

"Is Rugby Professional In Japan ?"
Only if it's played naked and in aquariums as a sub-category of weird porn.

(and THAT, gentlemen, was my 1000th post. Terribly sorry you had to endure 1000 yoe posts, and the worst thing is, I somehow haven't died yet in real life, so will continue posting on occasion...)