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#Post#: 147782--------------------------------------------------
Tony Rowe: Rugby needs to Americanise
DIR By: DOK
Date: January 13, 2026, 5:40 am
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The games has to appeal to younger people
HTML https://www.devonlive.com/sport/sport-opinion/tony-rowe-right-say-rugby-10752425
#Post#: 147785--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tony Rowe: Rugby needs to Americanise
DIR By: Brown Bottle
Date: January 13, 2026, 6:17 am
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Bit harsh blaming Rowe in the thread title. There's just the one
quote from him which was made and published on New Year's Eve!
[emoji846]
Most of the wacky stuff in that article came from the writer,
Ollie Phillips.
#Post#: 147790--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tony Rowe: Rugby needs to Americanise
DIR By: Camquin
Date: January 13, 2026, 6:43 am
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There are good points about crowd engagement - the longer the
fans are at the club, the more profit per attendee, but rugby
clubs have known this for decades. The problem is meeting the
changing wants of the faithful.
But then it goes mad and want to turn our sport into American
football.
There is a lot to be said for a sport where the players get
tired and start to make mistakes, so fitness in the final 20
minutes makes a difference.
And clubs cannot afford the squad size needed for a 23-person
match day side.
They certainly cannot afford to take on more players.
Go back to a five man bench, with no more than two front row
replacements, and get rid of the bomb squad.
#Post#: 147796--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tony Rowe: Rugby needs to Americanise
DIR By: Rugbycat
Date: January 13, 2026, 7:48 am
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Also formula e loses money and F1 makes money, one of the
criticisms in a report on it was the fans were confused by
constant “crazy “ rule changes.
It is has lots of car companies wanting to join, and revenue
grows, but it still loses money, the 4th generation cars coming
will be too fast for the street circuits it uses, so will be
artificially slowed or need to use permanent race tracks.
Just seems like the delusional ramblings of a journalist,
fuelled by the Exeter financial situation and fears that nobody
after Rowe will want the club.
#Post#: 147810--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tony Rowe: Rugby needs to Americanise
DIR By: FrostAndFire
Date: January 13, 2026, 10:07 am
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American sports are, in general, as boring as shit. 10 seconds
of something happening, then everyone stops for ages.
#Post#: 147812--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tony Rowe: Rugby needs to Americanise
DIR By: DOK
Date: January 13, 2026, 10:43 am
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--- Quote from: Brown Bottle link ---
>
> Bit harsh blaming Rowe in the thread title. There's just the
one quote from him which was made and published on New Year's
Eve! [emoji846]
>
> Most of the wacky stuff in that article came from the writer,
Ollie Phillips.
>
--- End Quote ---
Ah, is that it? I tried to find the original article and failed.
Didn't go back in time far enough.
This is what was actually in it
--- Quote from: Tony Rowe ---
> Despite the veneration, however, Rowe is not a chairman to
dwell on the past or rest on his laurels. The Prem is a
“brilliant product”, but Rowe has seen Exeter, one of the
league’s better supported clubs, register just one Sandy Park
sell-out this season, last weekend against Leicester Tigers. The
game has to evolve – and its clubs with it. The Prem’s
franchising plan is a step in the right direction in attracting
investment, but the league must continue to work hard to entice
a newer, younger demographic, too.
>
> “We have to grow our sport in England,” Rowe says. “We have a
fantastic sport. It’s gladiatorial. For a long time, World Rugby
and the Rugby Football Union wanted to dampen how gladiatorial
it was because everyone was worried about head injuries,
lawsuits, the rest of it. But, let’s be honest, mate, it’s
f------ gladiatorial. We have to promote it as such. But we need
more clubs. Ten is not enough. We want 12, or why not 14? If we
went to 16, even, then you could have two conferences of eight.
>
> “As we grow it, and franchise it, it should be played in
20-minute blocks. Play four 20-minute quarters. And maybe you
could have a squad of 30 with rolling replacements. The game has
to appeal to younger people. I sat at the AGM here in November
and at one stage I nudged a colleague, one of the other
directors, and I said: ‘I’m looking at this f------ sea of
people, and I can’t see anyone under the age of 60.’ Over 100
people. There were a few, but that’s a problem. We have to give
youngsters a bit more. My son is 24 and he loves watching
American sport because of the razzmatazz.
>
> “I would love it if they said that franchising, with no
relegation, would be implemented tomorrow. We have struggled to
find a front-of-shirt sponsor for next season and I know two or
three other Prem clubs who are in the same boat. Franchising
would be a brilliant thing and would further encourage an
investor to come here.
--- End Quote ---
#Post#: 147815--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tony Rowe: Rugby needs to Americanise
DIR By: poorfour
Date: January 13, 2026, 11:59 am
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At the risk of inviting invective from the usual quarters...
rugby clubs (including Exeter) are already investing (modestly)
in a form of the game that has less kicking, more tries, fewer
breaks in play, key games available free to air, cheaper tickets
and appeals to a younger audience.
#Post#: 147816--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tony Rowe: Rugby needs to Americanise
DIR By: Rugbycat
Date: January 13, 2026, 12:06 pm
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--- Quote from: poorfour link ---
>
> At the risk of inviting invective from the usual quarters...
rugby clubs (including Exeter) are already investing (modestly)
in a form of the game that has less kicking, more tries, fewer
breaks in play, key games available free to air, cheaper tickets
and appeals to a younger audience.
>
--- End Quote ---
Womens rugby perhaps, the trouble with Exeter was that the main
shirt sponsers, were companies owned by Rowe, he sold them when
he retired in 2021.
Ealing trailfinders run a similiar business model, the club is
owned by a foundation but the shirt sponser pays 3x more than
any prem club sponser, Ealings owner is 83, so they will at some
time face the same problem.
#Post#: 147820--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tony Rowe: Rugby needs to Americanise
DIR By: poorfour
Date: January 13, 2026, 12:22 pm
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That feels like a problem he should perhaps have anticipated,
being a successful businessman and all...
Added razzmatazz does work - it's one of the things BG/BSKO is
built on - but it takes time to achieve and I am not sure how
long you'd have to stick at it to build a fanbase. The Prem has
been one of the most competitive sporting leagues in the world
for years but it's still not profitable. And many clubs are
stuck in a situation where they are close to filling their
stadiums (even if Sandy Park is struggling to sell out) but
carrying enough debt that they can't afford to redevelop, which
makes growth harder.
The only real option for growth in the men's game is appealing
to a larger tv audience, but it's hard to shake the dominance of
football. I do think the strategy of creating personalities is a
way to attract a younger demographic - but 6 Nations Full
Contact was dull (especially compared to its US counterparts) -
and the women's game has arguably done a better job of building
player followings than the men's game.
#Post#: 147836--------------------------------------------------
Re: Tony Rowe: Rugby needs to Americanise
DIR By: Camquin
Date: January 14, 2026, 5:24 am
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You and i might like to discuss the subtleties of the scrum or
maul, but the casual view wants t see a back tearing down the
wing and sidestepping defenders.
So what do the powers that be do.
They increase the number of substitutes, which means the fat
blokes - and here I include female fat blokes like the great
Hannah Botterman - play for 45 minutes and then get replaced by
a fresh fat bloke. So they can make more tackles. so there is
less space for running rugby.
Curt down the bench, make the fat blokes play for 60 to 80
minutes and get tired. And then space will open up for running
rugby in the last twenty minutes and there will be a highlights
real that will entertain the casual viewer.
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