SA Rugby would SUPPORT Premiership-URC merger providing certain conditions are met – report
Lions and Stormers facing off in the URC in a match that could take place if latest merger proposal goes ahead.
It is understood that SA Rugby would back a merger between the United Rugby Championship and the English Premiership.
Last month it was reported that the Premiership were looking at joining forces with the URC as a way of potentially increasing the value of broadcast deals.
However, Premiership clubs were split as to whether they would want to include South African and Italian sides.
A British and Irish league was one of the proposed ideas, which would leave South Africa and Italy stranded, and potentially be a damaging blow for the game in those countries.
The options on the table
The URC released a statement in mid-September insisting that they were “not engaged in discussions”, but the talk over a possible merger has not gone away.
WalesOnline recently claimed that creating a two division league, which includes promotion and relegation, was being ‘seriously considered’.
Another option, according to Rapport, is to have the South African sides alongside teams from Ireland, Scotland and Italy, with England and Wales in the other division.
At the end of the regular season, the top four from each division would then face-off in play-off matches to determine the winner.
“The icing on the cake will be if the top eight teams from such a league then play against the top eight teams from the French Top 14 league,” an informant told Rapport.
According to that outlet, SA Rugby would ‘welcome’ such an idea, or a proposal of a similar kind, providing their key franchises – the Bulls, Lions, Sharks and Stormers – are included.
It is understood that any potential merger is unlikely to happen before May 2026, while the Premiership’s CEO Simon Massie-Taylor recently cast doubt on whether it would go ahead at all.
Fortunately for South Africa, Massie-Taylor effectively killed off the idea of a British and Irish league, expressing concern about the obstacles that would need to be overcome to make such a proposal work.
Premiership’s view on merger
“You need to think not just four years ahead, but 10 years ahead,” he said.
“You ask all the questions around European competitions and you’ve got to keep a long-term open mind about how things will pan out.
“We’re really proud of the Premiership. We think it’s on a really good trajectory and the numbers prove that with the interest around it.
“If you were ever to change things, the benchmark is massively high and it should be.
“You look at all sorts of options but the obvious thing to say about a British and Irish league is what happens to the rest of URC? Because they’ve shareholders there and they’d all need to agree to do something different.
“When you look at the relative economics of things it’s quite hard to make it work for all stakeholders.
“I do think we’re in a very strong position. It’s difficult to see how you take an expansive approach without compromising elsewhere in the system.”
READ MORE: Premiership chief addresses URC merger reports as they plan ‘10 years ahead’