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#Post#: 125828--------------------------------------------------
Pitfalls and potential of women's professionalism
DIR By: DOK
Date: June 23, 2024, 6:10 am
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Excessive wage demands are putting pressure on top-flight teams,
who are trying to find ways to grow sustainably
HTML https://www.telegraph.co.uk/rugby-union/2024/06/23/special-report-professionalism-in-premiership-womens-rugby/
Special Report: Pitfalls and potential of professionalism in
Premiership Women’s Rugby
Excessive wage demands are putting pressure on top-flight teams,
who are trying to find ways to grow sustainably
Fiona Tomas 23 June 2024 • 9:05am
The phone signal is patchy but Dave Ward’s pragmaticism cuts
through almost perfectly. “We’d love to play all of our games at
Ashton Gate,” says the Bristol Bears Women’s head coach, “but
financially, it doesn’t make sense. We lost money on the games
there this season.”
It might be a bleak outlook, but as the curtain draws on another
Premiership Women’s Rugby season there is cause for optimism.
Bristol lost to Gloucester-Hartpury in their first PWR final on
Saturday at Sandy Park and while silverware is the ultimate
marker of a successful season, the former Harlequins hooker is
happy to point out the other small wins.
This season, Bristol have started turning a modest profit at
their home ground, Shaftesbury Park. The club has been renting
the 200-seater stadium in Frenchay, north of the city centre,
from National League Two men’s side Dings Crusaders for the past
five years. “It’s a small amount, but it’s a step in the
direction,” says Ward. “It’s a real battle, but we’re up for the
fight.”
If navigating the cash-strapped ecosystem of domestic women’s
rugby is an unenviable task, balancing the books is nigh on
impossible. This season kicked off with a welcome rebrand and a
new broadcast deal with TNT Sports under chief executive Belinda
Moore, who oversaw the league’s eye-catching “Powered
Differently” campaign. While the mini makeover was well
received, it has not masked the growing pains of professionalism
that are being felt across the league.
‘It risks the rich getting richer’
On the pitch, the gulf between the best and the rest is
widening. A club insider from one of the league’s so-called ‘Big
Four’ of Gloucester-Hartpury, Saracens, Bristol and Exeter
Chiefs, claimed a “bidding war” has opened up among England
internationals.
Another well-placed club source told Telegraph Sport they had
received requests from some Red Roses of up to £25,000 for a
club contract (on top of their existing salaries with the Rugby
Football Union, worth up to £47,250 this year). In a league
where clubs are governed by a £190,000 salary cap (it will rise
to £220,000 next season), there are many who question whether
generously paying marquee players is sustainable.
“Some figures that I was privy to being offered certainly last
season were significantly more than we’d even contemplate,” says
one club coach. “You’re talking 15 to 20 per cent of your salary
cap on one player. That’s not a great model for the development
of the entire league, especially when there are players who are
already supported by central contracts. It risks the rich
getting richer.”
Most clubs no longer pay players match fees, the low value of
which means they are no longer compatible with employment law.
Telegraph Sport, however, has learnt of at least one PWR club
that have been paying periphery squad members £50 a game this
season. The same club offered an England player a £13,000
salary, £9,000 worth of university fees and free accommodation
(the latter does not sit inside the salary cap).
“England players want more,” says another coach. “The gap
between your everyday players and the top players is getting
bigger and you get angst in your squad. I try to make my
decisions based on their lives and what they earn and what their
situation is, but it’s really stressful.”
Agents are reluctant to get involved in contract discussions at
club level, preferring to take a lead on commercial deals and
agreements. “The game just isn’t at a stage yet where we can
have any direct influence,” says one. “The drop off from the
girls who’ve signed new Red Roses contracts to what players are
picking up domestically is chalk and cheese.”
Alex Austerberry, the Saracens director of rugby, believes more
needs to be done to support semi-professional players hanging
off the coattails of internationals who are being paid liveable
salaries.
“The league has to grow organically so it doesn’t bankrupt
itself,” says Austerberry. “It’s a tough time for rugby at the
moment – we can’t live beyond our means. What does that look
like for scholarships? What does that look like for
accommodation that’s linked to academic choice?”
‘It’s finding things that move the needle’
If the professional salaries are not yet there, the
infrastructure is. Most clubs have embraced the move to men’s
Premiership stadia, with Loughborough Lightning’s partnership
with Northampton Saints meaning they played all their home
matches at Franklin’s Gardens this season. The alliance has
sparked a groundswell of support for the women’s team: a few
seasons ago they averaged meagre crowds of around 150 at their
university campus. This term, they have averaged around 1,000.
Mark Darbon, the Northampton Saints chief executive, hails the
investment model a “match made in heaven” because of how the
financial burden is spread. Saints provide Lightning with a cash
offering and a match-day facility, while Lightning contract the
players and staff. Darbon insists the club are not a million
miles away from breaking even because of their relatively low
operation costs (Saints, unlike some other clubs, own their
stadium).
Foregoing the popular ‘one club’ mentality that clubs routinely
preach, Lightning raised eyebrows earlier this season when they
donned Saints’ black, green and gold strip but maintained their
distinctively purple crest. A replica kit is not yet available
to buy – partly because the two clubs have different kit
manufacturers – but Saints are already reaping rewards from a
merchandising standpoint.
“A lot of the stuff that we sell is co-branded,” says Darbon.
“I’m not a big fan of these half-and-half scarves that you’ll
see in football but we sell a lot of half-Loughborough,
half-Saints scarves. We love that, because that’s the adoption
of our joint women’s team from our existing fanbase. We’re
trying to find the things that move the needle.”
What would he say to those who accuse men’s rugby clubs of
haemorrhaging money to support the women’s game? “I’d say, come
and watch,” says Darbon. “On the field in the elite women’s game
we’re seeing some fantastic rugby. The feedback we get
consistently from people who come is that they really enjoy it.
They’re pleasantly surprised by the quality of the games.”
‘My remit is to grow sustainably’
Similar initiatives to engage rugby communities have been in
full flow at Gloucester-Hartpury in a bid to drive up revenue
streams to help offset costs. The club has sold more than 500 of
their alternate ‘Pink Circus’ shirt this season, generating in
the region of £30,000. Plans are already in motion for the team
to launch their own clothing range next season.
“One of my remits is that we grow sustainably,” says James
Forrester, the Gloucester-Hartpury chief executive who spent
nine years as a back row for the Cherry and Whites. “Winning
helps, but we’ve seen really big growth throughout the
sponsorships and have seen some big local firms getting really
excited about the team and wanting to support the team.
“We’ve seen a lot of improvements very quickly but we want to do
it in a sustainable way. Some of these players have an amazing
opportunity to compete in a home World Cup [next year] and be
selected for the Lions tour a couple of years later, so it’s a
really exciting time.”
The numbers are there to back it up. PWR’s YouTube channel has
had 5.2 million impressions this season (up from 810,000 last
year) while its number of ‘watch hours’ on the platform have
skyrocketed from 2,000 last season to nearly 80,000 this year.
The hope is that the BBC’s coverage of next year’s home World
Cup can be the catalyst the sport needs to cross into the
mainstream.
“Collectively, as a sport, we have to grow the audience for
women’s rugby, otherwise none of this stuff matters,” says
Darbon. “It doesn’t matter if our team is called Loughborough
Lightning or Saints. It doesn’t matter how good a campaign we’ve
got about the athletes is. We’ve got to grow the audience.
That’s what drives everything.”
#Post#: 125848--------------------------------------------------
Re: Pitfalls and potential of women's professionalism
DIR By: Rocker
Date: June 24, 2024, 5:05 am
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That explains why Brian Moore is always bashing on about women's
rugby, his wife runs it!
Sounds like the same problems as men's rugby.
#Post#: 125850--------------------------------------------------
Re: Pitfalls and potential of women's professionalism
DIR By: poorfour
Date: June 24, 2024, 5:23 am
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--- Quote from: Rocker link ---
>
> That explains why Brian Moore is always bashing on about
women's rugby, his wife runs it!
> Sounds like the same problems as men's rugby.
>
>
--- End Quote ---
His daughter is also a county level U16 player - though not sure
if she has ambitions to go further.
The issues are similar to men's rugby but there are three key
differences. One is that the potential growth curve is higher,
especially if RWC2025 can capture the imagination of fans (who
don't necessarily need to be fans of men's rugby).
The second is that once teams get to the point where they can
profitably use the men's stadia - which clearly is some way off
for some of them - it's leveraging the infrastructure in a way
that is positive for both sides of the game.
The third is that because player salaries are starting from such
a low base and England has a lead in professionalism, the league
has a chance to keep the cap at an affordable level and reach
profitability earlier - though as the article points out, there
are still some big tensions to resolve.
#Post#: 125852--------------------------------------------------
Re: Pitfalls and potential of women's professionalism
DIR By: fromrichmond
Date: June 24, 2024, 7:57 am
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same problem as mens rugby
a minority sport with limited appeal
#Post#: 125853--------------------------------------------------
Re: Pitfalls and potential of women's professionalism
DIR By: Yareet
Date: June 24, 2024, 11:47 am
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--- Quote from: fromrichmond link ---
>
> same problem as mens rugby
> a minority sport with limited appeal
>
--- End Quote ---
Out of interest, when does a sport move from "minority" and
"limited appeal" to mainstream? Beyond men's football are there
any sports in the UK that fit the description?
#Post#: 125856--------------------------------------------------
Re: Pitfalls and potential of women's professionalism
DIR By: Brown Bottle
Date: June 24, 2024, 12:31 pm
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--- Quote from: Yareet link ---
>
> Out of interest, when does a sport move from "minority" and
"limited appeal" to mainstream? Beyond men's football are there
any sports in the UK that fit the description?
>
--- End Quote ---
Not sure what the criteria are but:
Cricket
Golf
Lawn Tennis (for 2 weeks a year)
I suspect Rugby League would count if you only considered that
part of the country where it's played.
#Post#: 125857--------------------------------------------------
Re: Pitfalls and potential of women's professionalism
DIR By: Surbiton Quin
Date: June 24, 2024, 12:44 pm
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--- Quote from: Brown Bottle link ---
>
> Not sure what the criteria are but:
>
> Cricket
> Golf
> Lawn Tennis (for 2 weeks a year)
>
> I suspect Rugby League would count if you only considered that
part of the country where it's played.
>
--- End Quote ---
I would say that cricket moves from limited appeal to more
mainstream when there is a test and basically front page for the
Ashes, but there is a lot of dilution are we talking IPL as
well?
Golf has the Open, Ryder Cup and maybe the Masters
Tennis has Wimbledon and not a lot of equivalent support for the
majors
Rugby League the final, and the State of Origin (maybe personal
but only game I watch if in a position to do so)
Others
Athletics = Olympics
Cycling see above or Toue De France
Sailing, minority to people vaguely caring, America's Cup or
Olympics
Boxing depends on weight/boxer
Basically all, except racing which doesn't have teams etc an is
essentially different, are minority/minor interest bar football.
Not saying that they are lessor or inferior or that collectively
they may outweigh football in support, but that's the media/TV ?
reporting landscape.
#Post#: 125863--------------------------------------------------
Re: Pitfalls and potential of women's professionalism
DIR By: deadlyfrom5yardsout
Date: June 25, 2024, 1:53 am
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The most popular sport, by some distance, is Angling. Perhaps we
should insist that when buying their fishing licences they
should also have to buy a subscription to TNT...
#Post#: 125865--------------------------------------------------
Re: Pitfalls and potential of women's professionalism
DIR By: poorfour
Date: June 25, 2024, 2:59 am
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This discussion is about professionalism, though.
Soccer is the big global beast, but there are several other
sports that support a strong professional market. Globally,
golf, tennis, horse- and motor-racing support a scaled
professional circuit, albeit built on different things - the
first two sell kit to amateurs, the second is gambling and F1
seems to have been built on the sheer force of will of Bernie
Ecclestone and a canny choice of theme tune (oh, and the desire
of manufacturers to be associated with it).
Cricket is kind of global but the financial engine that sustains
it is basically IPL. America is a big enough market that it
supports three professional sports that most other countries
barely register. Australia does the same with Rugby League.
Most other sports are true minority sports, with funding coming
from lottery money rather than any sustainable audience share.
Rugby is in some ways similar to cricket. One facet of the game
- the top tier men's tournaments - is very profitable and
subsidises a lot of the rest of the game. The rest of the game
is marginally profitable at best.
#Post#: 125866--------------------------------------------------
Re: Pitfalls and potential of women's professionalism
DIR By: Rocker
Date: June 25, 2024, 3:15 am
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The trickle is that in my experience women's rugby is even less
popular than men's. We have 3 local teams in the 3 closest
towns.. They all put out multiple men's teams but struggle with
women's teams. I was the team manager for one of the ones that
my daughter's played for. They couldn't get enough players for 1
side at any age level. Not for want of trying.
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