Private Equity - again

[gingerjon]

Details: https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/oct/14/rfl-close-to-selling-stake-super-league-private-equity-rugby-league

[Damien]

Please God no.

[Eddie]

There’s only one thing more certain than death and taxes. 

[M j M]

Jesus what's wrong with these people.

[Agbrigg]

may be this is just a way of giving the Aussies a nudge

[GeordieSaint]

Is this what the coup was all about? FFS.

[Sports Prophet]

Ridiculous. They’ve already got a revenue sharing JV in place with one of the world’s largest marketing firms. Just get on with delivering the strategy of that plan, instead of looking for short cuts and short term wins. 

Infuriating.

[Spidey]

How much did it cost last time £500k? to get nowhere.  No wonder they don't want to pay for 13/14

[Tommygilf]

Stop this now

[gingerjon]

1 minute ago, Tommygilf said:

Stop this now

I can only assume this has come out now because someone on the inside wants it to be stopped.

[Mark S]

The only upside is that the PE usually parachutes their own marketing team (in my experience, it could be a collective of business and agencies) into a business. 

[Tommygilf]

These people are not stewards of the game they are a bunch of 2 bob millionaires who can't afford their own egos outspending eachother.

Of course this is what its about...

[RigbyLuger]

6 minutes ago, Sports Prophet said:

Ridiculous. They’ve already got a revenue sharing JV in place with one of the world’s largest marketing firms. Just get on with delivering the strategy of that plan, instead of looking for short cuts and short term wins. 

Infuriating.

But IMG are evil and want the clubs to work for it...

[gingerjon]

12 minutes ago, GeordieSaint said:

Is this what the coup was all about? FFS.

It would fit.

[Tommygilf]

1 minute ago, Mark S said:

The only upside is that the PE usually parachutes their own marketing team (in my experience, it could be a collective of business and agencies) into a business. 

There's zero upside. They're a leech on any competition and the only people interested in buying back the shares are the original organisation themselves.

[Tommygilf]

Who is backing PE then? 

Have any clubs changed from last time?

[Skids]

Madness

[Tommygilf]

10 minutes ago, gingerjon said:

I can only assume this has come out now because someone on the inside wants it to be stopped.

I hope so, and I hope they succeed in stopping this lunacy.

[Damien]

14 minutes ago, Mark S said:

The only upside is that the PE usually parachutes their own marketing team (in my experience, it could be a collective of business and agencies) into a business. 

Isn't this what we are doing/have done with IMG?

[Ethereal]

"The NRL is understood to have wanted to buy into a 10-team competition, with clubs in London and France, and a plan to rebrand it as NRL Europe. This model was rejected by several established Super League clubs in the north of England, who were concerned about being shut out of the competition"

[Nothus]

This bit is interesting, maybe they won't mind Toulouse being in SL after all. Might also be worth more if there is a club based in the capital too...

 

"A source with knowledge of the investment discussions told the Guardian that the expansion process is linked to the proposed sale due to the RFL’s belief that a bigger league will lead to a higher valuation."

[Tommygilf]

Just now, Nothus said:

This bit is interesting, maybe they won't mind Toulouse being in SL after all. Might also be worth more if there is a club based in the capital too...

 

"A source with knowledge of the investment discussions told the Guardian that the expansion process is linked to the proposed sale due to the RFL’s belief that a bigger league will lead to a higher valuation."

Expansion in the sense of 14 is more than 12, not geographical

[Nothus]

Just now, Tommygilf said:

Expansion in the sense of 14 is more than 12, not geographical

I know, but the point still stands.

[GeordieSaint]

8 minutes ago, Ethereal said:

"The NRL is understood to have wanted to buy into a 10-team competition, with clubs in London and France, and a plan to rebrand it as NRL Europe. This model was rejected by several established Super League clubs in the north of England, who were concerned about being shut out of the competition"

Turn round and tell them - 12 or 14 or no sale. Bargain with the NRL. Don’t shut them out and conduct self-harm by going down the PE route. Utterly infuriating.

[Eddie]

13 minutes ago, Ethereal said:

"The NRL is understood to have wanted to buy into a 10-team competition, with clubs in London and France, and a plan to rebrand it as NRL Europe. This model was rejected by several established Super League clubs in the north of England, who were concerned about being shut out of the competition"

Fair enough too, as it would leave only 7 spaces for English teams outside of London.