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Thread: Fixing Rugby Australia's Finances

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    Fixing Rugby Australia's Finances

    Imagine if you will a scenario where you get a phone call or an email from Rugby Australia. Asking you to make a suggestion or suggestions on how you would fix the problems with Rugby Australia's Financials. I am not talking about the Board, the Chairman or the current or former CEOs. Or how they have been selected or appointed. That has been flogged to death.

    Here are my suggestions.

    The UTS/Rugby Australia Building, Moore Park.

    If RA owns it - its time to move out and offer it up for a longterm lease or sell it. If they are renting it, move out. The building is a prime example of the excess that is RugbyAustralia. It proves nothing and the job can be done from a Storage unit in Blacktown just as well as it can be done with a view over Centennial Park and at a 20th of the price.

    Air Fares and Travel

    First Class travel for RA Board members to unnecessary Rugby junkets on the other side of the world. Pick up the phone, it's cheaper. If the players are flying business class or premium economy - they can move on down to the cheap seats with the rest of us. Times are tough. Changes are necessary.

    Corporate Box

    Its time the Board got out of the Corporate Box's and sat with the general public. They might just learn something.


    I know that these changes are only a small part of the need for systemic changes required across the whole organisation. But its a start and it's a good visual to show that the RA Board is serious about trying to save money.

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    First thing I would do is separate the administration of the professional game from that of the amateur game, making it solely responsible for delivery of professional competition similar to the EPCR.
    That separation would make budget management much more transparent, and enable all expenditure to be put through the filter of "How does this increase the value of the professional game"?
    Then make the revenue returned to the amateur game the primary KPI by which administrator remuneration is judged.

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    I think it needs a good analysis of the massive staff in head office. The organisation looks to be top heavy. After that, look at the effectiveness of player contracting, there have been some shocking decisions in the last few years
    Yes, liquidate some real estate
    Try to find an income stream that reduces our reliance on broadcasters (admittedly I have no clue what or how)

    That should get rid of some of the red

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    C'mon the

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    Quote Originally Posted by .X. View Post
    Imagine if you will a scenario where you get a phone call or an email from Rugby Australia. Asking you to make a suggestion or suggestions on how you would fix the problems with Rugby Australia's Financials. I am not talking about the Board, the Chairman or the current or former CEOs. Or how they have been selected or appointed. That has been flogged to death.

    Here are my suggestions.

    ...
    But first, the RA Board and other denizens of the Moore Park bunker will have to be weaned off their caviar canapes, smoked salmon and Moet.

    (And what would be wrong with a rented shed in Toongabbie as Rugby Australia's new address?)

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    Quote Originally Posted by FingerTips View Post

    (And what would be wrong with a rented shed in Toongabbie as Rugby Australia's new address?)
    Toongabbie is expensive. They will need to move further west.

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    The RA and the Wallabies should move to Ballymore. The funding plans have already been lodged with the Government.

    It is already owned by a Rugby body, has several pitches, the right weather for year round training, close to clubs and schools and there is an administration building that the QRU use. Rugby also benefits as they aren’t paying a lease to an outside body.

    They can also lease it to Soccer the Roar have used it. There is rent revenue for the game there.

    Before they moved to St Leonard’s they shared a building with the NSWRU so it has happened previously.

    England and Ireland have their head offices on the same grounds as the stadium so they don’t spend a small fortune on leasing buildings. The Lions, IRB and Pro 14 operate out of the same building. It is just smart and cuts a lot of the costs. The Heineken Cup was run out of there before it went to Switzerland.

    Absolutely agree on the head count. It appears they have a top digital department. This is while their more traditional advertising and marketing of the game has deteriorated. It seems to run by grads and millennials who haven’t grasped the term awareness. Super Rugby always had tv and radio ads. There were ads encouraging people to play the game led by the Wallabies.

    Now they have nothing. People don’t know that games are on, who the players are and where to go to join up to play at a local club.

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    Andy that is how the Irish run community and professional Rugby. Take Munster for example there is Munster Rugby who look after the pro sides and there is the Munster branch. The branch looks after the domestic community game. They are run separately but they are still tied under Munster and a part of the IRFU. The province still runs an independent operation.

    It only really gets complicated when clubs get promoted out of the provincial branch junior league in to the All Ireland League which is run by the IRFU. The higher up the divisions you go the more likely you are to get affected by the elite/professional game where players start to become unavailable for their clubs.

    Ireland haven’t made the same mistake Wales have done. Wales have a separate body represent the regions even though the WRU signs up to cross border leagues.

    This has led to disputes and it has got messy with the WRU buying in to the Dragons even though the region is a part of Regional Rugby Wales.

    Quote Originally Posted by GIGS20 View Post
    I think it needs a good analysis of the massive staff in head office. The organisation looks to be top heavy. After that, look at the effectiveness of player contracting, there have been some shocking decisions in the last few years
    Yes, liquidate some real estate
    Try to find an income stream that reduces our reliance on broadcasters (admittedly I have no clue what or how)

    That should get rid of some of the red
    The French have the answers for that. Their clubs have quality marketing, bums on seats in grandstands is a big focus, local buy in to clubs, clubs can’t spend a massive percentage of their budget on salaries, clubs have to have the finances to compete in the relevant league and they are top heavy with sponsors. Tickets and merchandise are affordable too. The likes Clermont and Toulon have cafes/brasseries next to their grounds so it is like their version of the leagues clubs so they get another revenue stream.

    Their league isn’t solely reliant on broadcast rights even though they get an increase each renewal and they haven’t had the need to look for a CVC type deal.

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    Veteran chibi's Avatar
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    How much does the sevens program cost? Or does it make money through prize-money or broadcast revenue?

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    Quote Originally Posted by chibi View Post
    How much does the sevens program cost? Or does it make money through prize-money or broadcast revenue?
    It cost 5 million last year.

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    Quote Originally Posted by chibi View Post
    How much does the sevens program cost? Or does it make money through prize-money or broadcast revenue?
    As sevens is an Olympic sport now, does it get subsidized by the AOC? If so, and if that money goes into RA's accounts (even if ring-fenced) then that's another worry for RA as the AOC will pull their funding if there's financial irregularities.

    (There were threats to do this to cycling, although cycling's governing bodies make RA look positively streamlined!)

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    RA move to Ballymore

    Bikkies this will never happen, as Rob Penney NSW Coach has said, the politics in Australian Rugby is insane. NSW believe they own Rugby Union in Australia and would never allow the HQ to be moved to QLD.
    This interstate rivalry between these two States is one of the many reasons Rugby Union has gone backwards in Australia over a decade or so.



    Quote Originally Posted by Bakkies View Post
    The RA and the Wallabies should move to Ballymore. The funding plans have already been lodged with the Government.

    It is already owned by a Rugby body, has several pitches, the right weather for year round training, close to clubs and schools and there is an administration building that the QRU use. Rugby also benefits as they aren’t paying a lease to an outside body.

    They can also lease it to Soccer the Roar have used it. There is rent revenue for the game there.

    Before they moved to St Leonard’s they shared a building with the NSWRU so it has happened previously.

    England and Ireland have their head offices on the same grounds as the stadium so they don’t spend a small fortune on leasing buildings. The Lions, IRB and Pro 14 operate out of the same building. It is just smart and cuts a lot of the costs. The Heineken Cup was run out of there before it went to Switzerland.

    Absolutely agree on the head count. It appears they have a top digital department. This is while their more traditional advertising and marketing of the game has deteriorated. It seems to run by grads and millennials who haven’t grasped the term awareness. Super Rugby always had tv and radio ads. There were ads encouraging people to play the game led by the Wallabies.

    Now they have nothing. People don’t know that games are on, who the players are and where to go to join up to play at a local club.

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    Before he ran Ten between 2013 and 2015, McLennan was executive vice-president to the office of chairman at News Corp, working closely with founder and executive chairman Rupert Murdoch.
    Weren't 10 insolvent until CBS bought the network in the last 18 months?

    Looks like Rugby has another bloke that has failed upwards in his career.

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    Quote Originally Posted by jargan83 View Post
    Weren't 10 insolvent until CBS bought the network in the last 18 months?

    Looks like Rugby has another bloke that has failed upwards in his career.
    A key part of the selection criteria.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bakkies View Post
    A key part of the selection criteria.
    was he involved when CBS pulled 10s ass out of the fire, you'd have to consider that to be a massive black mark.

    (can't have anybody with experience SAVING a corporation in the RA board)

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    C'mon the

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