Will Super Rugby get going again in 2020? Will the victorious World Cup-winning Springboks get to play in front of their own fans later this year, and what about the Currie Cup and even the World Sevens Series?
Local chiefs and World Rugby are at the crossroads and some tough decisions are going to have to be made about the future of competitions and events in the coming weeks and months.
The outbreak of the coronavirus has seen world sport grind to a halt, including rugby competitions across the globe.
Sanzaar chief executive Andy Marinos admits that if the competition doesn’t get going again in five weeks’ time, the season will be scrapped with no winner being crowned.
He tells Newshub: “You know, if it goes four, five weeks then it’s going to be almost impossible because we don’t have the schedule to do anything further.
“The consequences of not having a 2020 competition would be massive.”
CONTACT GAME: Rugby is in trouble. Picture: Franck Robinchon/Reuters.
And Marinos adds: “[If we didn’t get back] it would put us in a very
precarious position.
“That’s why it’s so important to work with our broadcasters and why we’re so determined to see if we can’t get some form of rugby and some kind of structure up in the foreseeable future
“Without that revenue, without playing in front of crowds in stadiums, it has a direct impact on the
bottom line.”
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— Springbok Sevens (@Blitzboks)
SA Rugby said it was still too early to make a decision on July’s inbound tour of Georgia and Scotland for Tests against the Boks, as well as the Rugby Championship and SuperSport Challenge Series, which is due to start at the end of April.