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You know, the longer this all goes on the more I'm of the opinion that we're simply papering over the cracks with regards European rugby, whatever the outcome of the current crisis. The Welsh sides could go into the Premiership and it might work out for them, but even if it does it leave the other Pro 12 sides in a lurch and their own union in a substantially weakened position. They could stay in the Pro 12 and try to maintain the status quo, but the player drain to France and England seems unstoppable for Welsh rugby (and possibly the Irish game going forward) as the Celtic nations simply cannot provide enough of an audience to get a decent TV package. The Pro 12 has been dominated by Welsh and Irish sides since its inception and it seems like only the Irish sides really give a damn at this point (I know there are exceptions, but let's talk general terms here.) That's a tiny market compared to what the Top 14 can command. As the financial gap widens, the Pro 12 product will get weaker making it even less appealing in something of a downward spiral. For me this is inescapable at this point.
There's a hard truth that I believe all parties are missing somewhat; European rugby is fundamentally broken. The Celtic and Italian sides can't bring in the money to continue to compete, the top English sides are being hamstrung by a salary cap in place to keep the middling to weaker sides from disappearing into financial oblivion and in France a lot of historic sides are beginning to suffer due to the sheer financial clout of the likes of Toulon. The propsed European Champions Cup wouldn't have fixed these issues, nor will the continuing ERC competition or the Welsh joining the Premiership.
To me it seems that the only real way for European club rugby to move forward is in the form of a pan European league competition. A 24 team competition with two conferences run in a similar fashion to the NFL would allow for domestic rivalries to be kept in place as well as a fairer distribution of wealth. Domestic leagues in England and France could be kept in place in a truncated form while meaningful competition would still exist for the Celtic sides incapable of supporting pro leagues themselves. There'd also be room for expansion into areas like Spain, Germany and Eastern Europe as the league grows in strength, aiding the development of rugby in the tier 2 nations.
I know there are a lot of flaws and there'll be a hell of a lot of resistance, but to me it seems like this is what we're inevitably heading toward and the sooner the unions and leagues cop on and swallow their pride the better for all involved.
There's a hard truth that I believe all parties are missing somewhat; European rugby is fundamentally broken. The Celtic and Italian sides can't bring in the money to continue to compete, the top English sides are being hamstrung by a salary cap in place to keep the middling to weaker sides from disappearing into financial oblivion and in France a lot of historic sides are beginning to suffer due to the sheer financial clout of the likes of Toulon. The propsed European Champions Cup wouldn't have fixed these issues, nor will the continuing ERC competition or the Welsh joining the Premiership.
To me it seems that the only real way for European club rugby to move forward is in the form of a pan European league competition. A 24 team competition with two conferences run in a similar fashion to the NFL would allow for domestic rivalries to be kept in place as well as a fairer distribution of wealth. Domestic leagues in England and France could be kept in place in a truncated form while meaningful competition would still exist for the Celtic sides incapable of supporting pro leagues themselves. There'd also be room for expansion into areas like Spain, Germany and Eastern Europe as the league grows in strength, aiding the development of rugby in the tier 2 nations.
I know there are a lot of flaws and there'll be a hell of a lot of resistance, but to me it seems like this is what we're inevitably heading toward and the sooner the unions and leagues cop on and swallow their pride the better for all involved.