Super League’s chief executive has big plans for 2019

[eal]

Super League has to be more cot throat. Fewer teams meeting a higher criteria is what is needed. A TV deal that allows clubs to recruit big-name stars is also needed. SL has few big-name players these days. In years past Cooper Cronk would have moved to SL when he finished with Melbourne, nowadays all those guys stay in the NRL.

[Fax and furious]

Step 1. We know we have the greatest game and the 2019 tweaks help redress the slippage of late.

Step 2. Then its all about marketing. Marketing requires a consistent, identifiable, unique and compelling brand image. Two refs is one component from 2020, the Steedon ball etc - but a lot more can be learned and adopted from how the NRL does things. Needs commitment to do it not to mention hard work.

Let's have a truly global game. A process to discuss, agree, establish and maintain one set of laws by the NRL, SL, RFL and RLIF is essential. Given the starting point, this will be driven by the NRL - but the balance would be redressed over time.

The NRL and SL seasons need to be aligned so far as possible. Points to a 14 team Super League (by inviting in two overseas teams for 2020) (thus avoiding loop fixtures with Magic Weekend becoming the Challenge Cup last 16 on first weekend in May) but also retaining P&R thereafter.

[Dave T]

I know it is a different thing, but a similar sport to ours has just had a £200m+ windfall/investment - call it what you will. What have they decided to spend the money on? Facilities, marketing, and global marketing/expansion.

For everyone who turns their nose up at marketing and expansion, we should be paying attention to decisions like this.

[Damien]

On ‎1‎/‎9‎/‎2019 at 9:51 AM, Dave T said:

I know it is a different thing, but a similar sport to ours has just had a £200m+ windfall/investment - call it what you will. What have they decided to spend the money on? Facilities, marketing, and global marketing/expansion.

For everyone who turns their nose up at marketing and expansion, we should be paying attention to decisions like this.

I'd hold your horses on what they may spend it on, they haven't spent it on anything yet and many of the clubs are millions in debt..

[Hemel Stag]

On 1/7/2019 at 8:10 PM, Angelic Cynic said:

Anyone know where they may be setting up shop in Manchester?

Seems money being spent on relocating the RFL and now Super League staff is available,but there isn't a magic money tree for other things - like clubs outside of Super League,or clubs wanting to enter the Challenge Cup.

I heard they were re-locating to part of the Manchester City "Etihad" complex. Does anyone know if this true?

[Hemel Stag]

On 1/9/2019 at 9:51 AM, Dave T said:

I know it is a different thing, but a similar sport to ours has just had a £200m+ windfall/investment - call it what you will. What have they decided to spend the money on? Facilities, marketing, and global marketing/expansion.

For everyone who turns their nose up at marketing and expansion, we should be paying attention to decisions like this.

Sold the family silver and will be leasing it back for years to come. The "investors" will require payment with interest. If the RU Premier Clubs couldn't make the books balance,  it will be harder with another creditor / shareholder to pay. The "investment" might clear their overdrafts but it won't expand their revenues. It has been reported that the RU Premier clubs want to turn their league into a closed shop for four or five years! Why try when you can't get relegated? Why push from a lower league if you can't be promoted? Where is the interest, where is the creative and competitive imperative?  If it is allowed it could be the death of that game as people switch off from shear apathy.

[Codex]

35 minutes ago, Hemel Stag said:

Sold the family silver and will be leasing it back for years to come. The "investors" will require payment with interest. If the RU Premier Clubs couldn't make the books balance,  it will be harder with another creditor / shareholder to pay. The "investment" might clear their overdrafts but it won't expand their revenues. It has been reported that the RU Premier clubs want to turn their league into a closed shop for four or five years! Why try when you can't get relegated? Why push from a lower league if you can't be promoted? Where is the interest, where is the creative and competitive imperative?  If it is allowed it could be the death of that game as people switch off from shear apathy.

 

 

The pro RU clubs sold 27% of their Premiership (the clubs own it via 13 seperate shareholdings) for £225m to CVC Partners after rejecting their earlier offer of £275m for 51%. This values the top league of pro RU at £883m
I think their family silver is still safe.

I imagine the owners of the bigger SL clubs will be watching how things develop with a very keen eye. 

[Clogiron]

30 minutes ago, Hemel Stag said:

Sold the family silver and will be leasing it back for years to come. The "investors" will require payment with interest. If the RU Premier Clubs couldn't make the books balance,  it will be harder with another creditor / shareholder to pay. The "investment" might clear their overdrafts but it won't expand their revenues. It has been reported that the RU Premier clubs want to turn their league into a closed shop for four or five years! Why try when you can't get relegated? Why push from a lower league if you can't be promoted? Where is the interest, where is the creative and competitive imperative?  If it is allowed it could be the death of that game as people switch off from shear apathy.

One of the reasons for the 1895 split was that the great and the good of the RU thought that the northern clubs were too competitive in wanting cup's and league's so their game meanderd on its  way for the next 90 years playing 1st class fixture's and suchlike. If people haven't been bored to death by it in the last 120 year's they must have a high pain threshold and I would think are are unlikely to be swayed by a return to no promotion or relegation, after all the game's the thing old chap.

[ghost crayfish]

I'm expecting a 14 team comp to be announced at some point, with licenses for international clubs and p&r in the heartlands to keep the English towns happy. It'll depend on securing TV deals in France and North America that fund it. If that happens, Sky rl content will double with very little cost for them. That will increase rugby league's worth to them as contract negotiations roll around. Of course, this all will also make super league more appealing to sponsors, and perhaps more interesting to the national media in England. With Toronto's diversification going on, what a great time for super league to partner with them to push the competition into new markets. I think this is the direction Elstone is looking at, and all I can say is thank God it's him at the wheel, and not Rimmer!

[JohnM]

Shouldn't some of these later posts be on the cross code forum so that  our new member who has never been on here under any other name can be given the respect he or she desreves?

[Codex]

13 hours ago, ghost crayfish said:

I'm expecting a 14 team comp to be announced at some point, with licenses for international clubs and p&r in the heartlands to keep the English towns happy. It'll depend on securing TV deals in France and North America that fund it. If that happens, Sky rl content will double with very little cost for them. That will increase rugby league's worth to them as contract negotiations roll around. Of course, this all will also make super league more appealing to sponsors, and perhaps more interesting to the national media in England. With Toronto's diversification going on, what a great time for super league to partner with them to push the competition into new markets. I think this is the direction Elstone is looking at, and all I can say is thank God it's him at the wheel, and not Rimmer!

 

Relegation is increasingly becoming a barrier for professional sports to operate with. Citing football as the model where it works is, in my opinion, a mistake as football operates with very different resources to every other sport. The NFL completely eclipses the English Premier League commercially and they don't just market a sport with a very limited world wide appeal, they market a sport that is only played for 17 weeks a year with just 8 home games! 

The NFL is a model that really needs looking at seriously as a template to emulate - not copy - for RL.

[Angelic Cynic]

4 hours ago, Codex said:

 

Relegation is increasingly becoming a barrier for professional sports to operate with. Citing football as the model where it works is, in my opinion, a mistake as football operates with very different resources to every other sport. The NFL completely eclipses the English Premier League commercially and they don't just market a sport with a very limited world wide appeal, they market a sport that is only played for 17 weeks a year with just 8 home games! 

The NFL is a model that really needs looking at seriously as a template to emulate - not copy - for RL.

    The elite clubs gonna raise the salary cap?

    https://eu.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/2018/12/11/nfl-salary-cap-expected-increase-2019-season/2284116002/

   

[Damien]

1 hour ago, scotchy1 said:

They have, it will be 2.1m by 2020

Its not really gone up though. The recent rises are little more than inflationary rises, which should have been happening since the salary cap started.

[Dave T]

1 hour ago, Damien said:

Its not really gone up though. The recent rises are little more than inflationary rises, which should have been happening since the salary cap started.

Don't forget it is £2.1m plus the additional marquee player spend, so the cap has risen substantially versus the previous few years.

[Hemel Stag]

22 hours ago, Codex said:

 

 

The pro RU clubs sold 27% of their Premiership (the clubs own it via 13 seperate shareholdings) for £225m to CVC Partners after rejecting their earlier offer of £275m for 51%. This values the top league of pro RU at £883m
I think their family silver is still safe.

I imagine the owners of the bigger SL clubs will be watching how things develop with a very keen eye. 

All the Clubs (and PLC's) can't run at a loss forever. It's all getting too expensive to rely on say a local business man with deep pockets that likes a hobby. Taking the CVC money to pay off the debts is a bit like using a credit card to pay your overdraft, there will be a big cost. My point was that those teams are not balancing their books and have now acquired another creditor. Also, how can anyone value a business at £883m when it is a serial loss maker? What value will CVC Partners add? They didn't do wonders with Formula 1 and then sold that, at a loss. What can these dudes do for RU or RL ?? The mind boggles. I just don't see it. 

[Damien]

16 minutes ago, Hemel Stag said:

All the Clubs (and PLC's) can't run at a loss forever. It's all getting too expensive to rely on say a local business man with deep pockets that likes a hobby. Taking the CVC money to pay off the debts is a bit like using a credit card to pay your overdraft, there will be a big cost. My point was that those teams are not balancing their books and have now acquired another creditor. Also, how can anyone value a business at £883m when it is a serial loss maker? What value will CVC Partners add? They didn't do wonders with Formula 1 and then sold that, at a loss. What can these dudes do for RU or RL ?? The mind boggles. I just don't see it. 

It wont be any easier to run at a profit with CVC taking a third too.

[Codex]

57 minutes ago, Hemel Stag said:

All the Clubs (and PLC's) can't run at a loss forever. It's all getting too expensive to rely on say a local business man with deep pockets that likes a hobby. Taking the CVC money to pay off the debts is a bit like using a credit card to pay your overdraft, there will be a big cost. My point was that those teams are not balancing their books and have now acquired another creditor. Also, how can anyone value a business at £883m when it is a serial loss maker? What value will CVC Partners add? They didn't do wonders with Formula 1 and then sold that, at a loss. What can these dudes do for RU or RL ?? The mind boggles. I just don't see it. 

 

Not sure where you get your info but from what I've read CVC sold F1 to Liberty Media for a massive profit.

[Sir Kevin Sinfield]

9 hours ago, Dave T said:

Don't forget it is £2.1m plus the additional marquee player spend, so the cap has risen substantially versus the previous few years.

The salary cap was £1.8M in 2002, in real terms £2.1M today is lower. The salary cap has reduced, without counting the marquee player rule which most clubs don’t use.

Personally I would like to see the overall spend scrapped, but still some restrictions in place to keep the league competitive. Something like clubs are allowed 

3 players earning over £120k

7 players earning £100k to £120k

5 players earning £80k to £100k

5 players earning £60k to £80k

No limit on players earning under £60k

[JohnM]

"Super League’s chief executive has big plans for 2019"

He's certainly got a big job on his hands. Caught just a few minutes of Toulouse and Leinster on TV yesterday. Ground full, high-level sponsors, lots of Toulousians clearly made the trip. Decent commentators too making a silk purse out of a sows ear. Commercially MILES ahead of us. 

[Manxmanc]

3 minutes ago, JohnM said:

"Super League’s chief executive has big plans for 2019"

He's certainly got a big job on his hands. Caught just a few minutes of Toulouse and Leinster on TV yesterday. Ground full, high-level sponsors, lots of Toulousians clearly made the trip. Decent commentators too making a silk purse out of a sows ear. Commercially MILES ahead of us. 

And I noticed that the non-UK teams were getting a share of airtime on sports bulletins, yesterday.

In contrast, the RFL is effectively discouraging the involvement of Catalans, Toulouse and Toronto in a European (plus) competition.

[GeordieSaint]

1 hour ago, JohnM said:

"Super League’s chief executive has big plans for 2019"

He's certainly got a big job on his hands. Caught just a few minutes of Toulouse and Leinster on TV yesterday. Ground full, high-level sponsors, lots of Toulousians clearly made the trip. Decent commentators too making a silk purse out of a sows ear. Commercially MILES ahead of us. 

That sport has professionalised everything within the game. We have professionalised the playing element of the sport but none of our administration and commercial elements at both club and governing body level bar the odd example.

[Damien]

1 hour ago, scotchy1 said:

That's not really true, it's rising way faster than inflation at the moment. About 100k a year. Obviously that hasn't always been happening so the cap is playing catch up somewhat but we are seeing an increase now.

On £1,825,000 inflation is about £80k a year give or take. A rise of £275,000 in 3 years works out an average of 91k a year. That is little more than inflation in my book. I take Dave's point about marquee players adding to this but personally am sceptical about the value of the marquee rule and would much rather see a higher flat cap.

[Codex]

1 hour ago, JohnM said:

Decent commentators too making a silk purse out of a sows ear. 

 

And there, slipped in almost as a default, is one of the reasons that RL struggles so much to spread to new territories. 

[GeordieSaint]

23 minutes ago, Codex said:

And there, slipped in almost as a default, is one of the reasons that RL struggles so much to spread to new territories. 

The sport is littered with poor performance. A good friend of mine was a professional RU player and played at the top level - his opinion and of his peers was RL was a great sport run by amateurs and dressed up by poor regional stereotypes on SKY making the sport unappealing commercially and to the wider public. I tend to agree.

[Codex]

2 minutes ago, GeordieSaint said:

The sport is littered with poor performance. A good friend of mine was a professional RU player and played at the top level - his opinion and of his peers was RL was a great sport run by amateurs and dressed up by poor regional stereotypes on SKY making the sport unappealing commercially and to the wider public. I tend to agree.

 

The quote was a RL fan describing a RU match being played in a packed stadium.