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Will Rugby Eventually become a publicity stunt like football?

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Hodgey

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Hi Guys,
I’m a rugby player and fan myself, but as a third year university student, I’ve chosen to carry out my dissertation on research about the media coverage of the game.

I'm after some of your opinions on your view of the effects television is having on the game. Good or bad?

In my opinion I feel that it’s great we can watch out favourite teams live from our sofas or local bars, but I also feel that it can have a negative effect on the game. If you look at football back in the old days, its nothing like it is now. Now it’s all about how much money you have, who your wag is, what car you have etc not about the love for football.

Now that rugby is becoming ever more popular is there risk that television coverage along with corporate sponsorship will ruin the game. We have already seen the introductions of the new elv's. Is this to make the game easier on the spectators eyes, making it more enjoyable to watch?

Are we loosing the heritage of the game?

I'm interested in any opinions you may have.

Thanks

Alex
 
Rugby Union is evolving. Some of it naturally ie the higher fitness levels, increased stamina and skill levels (Skill levels mostly in the SH to be brutally honest) of the players have moved the game on from where it was before it went openly professional however television is definitely influencing the game big style. TV companies want a return on their investment and are looking to attract as many viewers and as much advertisement revenue as is possible and they are in the business of entertainment.
Personally I think the game is heading in the right way but changes in the game must be for the good of the game and not simply for entertainment.
 
Every sport eventually becomes about the money.
But, it comes down to the players being all about the money or not.

Just look at the Olympics, it used to be about showcasing amateur athletes, now countries are paying their athletes outrageous sums of money to bring home gold.
Even the hosting areas jump in on the olympic economics, for example, this was on the news a week back (lets call the hotel, Hotel A), the cost of hotel A at current is $150, when the 2010 olympics come, the price of hotel A will be $2250.

Whether this is healthy or not for rugby, is yet to be determined and rests solely with the players.


Our world, does not revolve around the sun, it revolves around the dollar sign.
 
Newer I think and I hope

Several reasons contribute to that: "crowd" never has any idea about the Rugby's soul

Rugby is not mass-sport itself, it can be understood by ideated persons

Rugby is cheap in comparison to football because the football is show and rugby is game
 
Football used to be about the game and not the show. do you not think that as the game of rugby is getting more and more attention starting from 2003, that the game could end up in the direction of football. take france for example, they are pumping money into the game which is attracting players from around the world to play in france. if you look in magazines like FHM Bionic, there is James Haskell. it used to have idols such as David Beckham. Look at the new elv's designed to make the game faster (or easier on the watchers eyes?) do you not think that maybe one day rugby could get spoiled by the money and publicity that is getting thrown at it.
 

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