Stephen O'Leary’s Post

An admirable aim undermined by a design-by-committee solution. The declared intention to roll out T1 rugby as the non-contact version of rugby in schools is as parochial as it gets. There is already a fast-paced, well-regulated, recognised non-contact version of rugby with national teams, World Cups and its own star players- it is called touch and is managed by the Federation of International Touch - you could even point to Try Tag Rugby as a more union-adjacent version. Instead World Rugby and the RFU with T1 rugby and previously Touch Union are trying to own the non-contact game and claim its players for their own- hence the dissolution of the O2 touch initiative after lockdown that had successfully seen many people take up touch rugby. As a player of both contact rugby union and touch rugby- I think T1 looks a hateful sport and a miserable experience as a competitive game. I'm surprised, and yet not surprised, that the overriding aim of 'get people running around with an oval ball and scoring tries' is being ignored here in the name of ownership and politics. Original Article: https://lnkd.in/ezdW_iRJ

Rugby might be a minority sport in sports-obsessed America but as a growing number of players and spectators agree, there is much in this sport to find attractive - effort, excitement and ethics. Matchday coverage: 2024 will be a big year for rugby in America: the 12-team MLR (Major League Rugby) kicks off its 7th season in February and at the Summer Olympics in Paris, the USA Rugby 7-a-side team comes into the spotlight. American talents of size, speed and athleticism are made for 7s. MLR will be shown on The Rugby Network, a subscription-based streaming service which also shows England’s Gallagher Premiership, Allianz Premiership Women’s Rugby in England, Collegiate Rugby Association of America, National Collegiate Rugby and U-23 games. The Olympics will be broadcast by NBC through cable and Peacock, their subscription streaming service which will offer the widest coverage of events. For American rugby fans and the large expat community here in the US, live games in the Gallagher Premiership (England), United Rugby Championship (clubs from Wales, Scotland, Ireland, South Africa and Italy), Investec Champions Cup (top European Clubs) and the Six Nations Tournament can be seen in their entirety. Please note, a few weeks ago I read Flo Rugby would be streaming the Six Nations games starting on February 2. However, it appears that despite nothing being displayed on their sports menu as of today (January 30th), Peacock will be showing the matches, kicking off with France vs. Ireland in Marseille this Friday. Documentaries:  In the style of Drive to Survive (Formula 1 racing), Break Point (tennis), Last Dance (Michael Jordan) and Beckham (David Beckham), Netflix recently launched a rugby documentary, “Six Nations: Full Contact”, an 8-episode “behind the scenes”  look at the 2023 Six Nations Rugby championship between the major European rugby nations. On February 1 RugbyPass TV (via rugbypass.com) will air “Whistle Blowers” a feature about the lives and experiences of elite-level rugby referees, talking about the recent World Cup and the unwelcome attention referees sometimes get - to the point where they hang up their whistle.  Great viewing for anyone interested in this critical side of the game. No refs? No match.

Local support is growing for rugby league to become an Olympic sport at the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. We’re already supporting our Queensland rugby clubs though Activate! in the 2024-25 Queensland Budget, including: 🏉 $225,000 in 2024-25 out of a $250,000 total spend for Logan City Rugby League to upgrade lighting to support rugby league at Hammel Park. 🏉 $372,201 in 2024-25 out of a $413,557 total spend for council to install lighting at the rugby league field at Doomadgee, home of the Doomadgee Dragons. 🏉 $175,285 in 2024-25 out of a $282,717 total spend for Mount Isa Rugby League to install changerooms to support rugby league at Mount Isa. These upgrades ensure the next generation of Queensland rugby league superstars are ready for Olympic or Origin glory! #QldBudget #Brisbane2032 #AllezAus | Queensland Rugby League | Department of Tourism and Sport

Legends of English Rugby are bowing out tonight when Northampton Saints host Saracens in the Premiership semi-final. It’s going to be au revoir for either Courtney Lawes and Lewis Ludlam from Northampton or Owen Farrell, Mako Vunipola and Billy Vunipola. The winners will only have 1 more week before they are across the channel too. Whichever side of the fence you sit on it's going to be an emotional evening. The bigger picture is that these 5 players are going to be lost to the English Club Game. They have a lot still to offer, they don't want to go but their clubs can't afford them. This is the real sadness. From what's been reported all 5 would rather stay here and see their career out over the next number of years. Questions have to be asked of the RFU and Premiership Rugby. How has the Premiership been overtaken by France and Japan as the richest places in the world to play rugby? Why can't we afford to pay our players more than France and Japan?

New blog article is now available and today's topic is all things rugby! "Super Rugby, once heralded as one of the premier rugby union competitions in the Southern Hemisphere, has undergone significant changes in recent years. Among the most profound shifts was the departure of South African teams, which has had far-reaching implications for the competition's excitement and business viability. This detailed article explores how the end of Super Rugby involving South African teams has affected the competition, both in terms of fan engagement and financial performance." To read more of the blog, click the link below: https://lnkd.in/gtS2Wg9w #sports #sportsmarketing #content #blog #writing #rugby #superrugby #sportsbusiness #agents #athletes

WOW! Wheelchair Rugby is Growing & Female participation increased by 36%! We have just finished compiling our participation results for last year and we have compared them to the year before. In simple terms wheelchair rugby is growing. GBWR Participation Statistics: Last years stats compared to the year before. - Overall membership grew by 13% - Female players increased by 36% and there are now over 100 female players! (114 to be exact) - 1 new international referee - well done Dale - 18% increase in the number of players in the Paralympic league - 3 new teams entered the WR5s league, which has 4 leagues. Development League Stats - 6 development leagues in the UK - Last year we had 33 new players who had never taken part in competition before - 82 female players - 15 new officials Lets keep growing! #WheelchairRugby #GBWR #Participation #DisabilitySport #WheelchairSport #statistics #UK #GB #UkSpoprt #SportEngland #SportWales #SportScotland #GBSport ThisGirlCan Initiative ThisGirlCan Foundation

My new article for Total Rugby Analysis looks at Spain winger Martiniano Cian, who has recently starred for his nation in the 2024 Rugby Europe Championship. I've broken down his game and shown how he has fitted into Los Leones' tactics. Comments welcome as always. #sports #sport #sportsjournalism #sportsanalysis #rugbyunion #rugby #rugbyunionanalysis #rugbyanalysis #rugbyeuropechampionship #rugbyeuropechampionship2024 #spain #spainrugby #martinianocian #tactics #analysis #tacticalanalysis #teamanalysis #scoutreport #playeranalysis #rugbyunionjournalism #rugbyjournalism

Why the Rugby Championship faces an uncertain future New Zealand Rugby and South African Rugby Union (SA Rugby)had reached agreement for quadrennial bilateral tours beginning in 2026. And the impact on The Rugby Championship will be significant. There is no word yet, though, on how the Rugby Australia and Unión Argentina de Rugby will fill their August-September Test windows in those years (in 2026, 2028 and 2030). Should Fiji Rugby Union and Japan Rugby Football Union be included in the rejigged Rugby Championship? It might be more benefit to RA and the UAR on their own arrangements. The Japanese fans are going to turn up, they’re going to fill whatever stadium they get a chance to get to, and the same with Fiji. On the side, Fiji and Japan can become conditioned to tough tests, grow in stature and ultimately become genuine top-tier rugby nations. #sports #business #coaching #world #futuro

Winner Takes it All Series at the Madrid Rugby Sevens! 🌟 The 2024 HSBC SVNS season is set to reach a thrilling conclusion at the World Rugby Sevens Series Grand Final in #Madrid! The top 8 teams will compete in a 'winner takes all' series to crown the Series Champions, while the bottom 4 teams will face off against the top contenders from the World Rugby HSBC Sevens Challenger Series to secure their place in the 2025 HSBC SVNS series. Excitement is in the air as RugbyDAO prepares for an epic showdown! Men’s teams like Unión Argentina de Rugby, FFR - Fédération Française de Rugby, and South African Rugby Union (SA Rugby), along with women’s teams from Rugby Australia, Rugby Canada, and New Zealand Rugby, are all set to compete for championship glory. Meanwhile, teams such as Kenya Rugby Union and Unión de Rugby del Uruguay are determined to challenge the USA Rugby and Real Federación Española de Rugby for a coveted spot in the 2025 HSBC SVNS series. Prepare for an electrifying display of #skill and #determination as these top teams vie for supremacy and a place in the next season. Who will take home the championship, and who will secure their spot for the future? 🏉🏆 #HSBCSVNS #RugbySevens #Rugby #RoadTo2025 Web3 Sports Ventures Photo Credit: Kiwis in Spain

Update: The RFU has approved the structure of the Premiership and Championship for next season. Promotion/relegation will be subject to a two-legged play-off between the Premiership’s lowest team and the Championship winners, provided that the Championship winners meet the necessary Minimum Standards Criteria. In other words, the status quo will remain. Many had hoped for a revitalised, streamlined second tier to stimulate commercial growth, but this has not materialised, seemingly after opposition from some Championship clubs. This therefore feels a missed opportunity. But it was clear that the reported lack of engagement from the RFU and Premiership with the Championship clubs was always going to make meaningful change difficult. So where does this leave English club rugby? It is not clear that this news will stimulate significant investment into the Championship, but it does at least guarantee the existence of the current Championship clubs and maintains a route through to the top tier. But, as the past decade has shown, this matters little if there is no meaningful investment into the second tier and if there remain significant barriers to entry to the Premiership (a relegation play-off system is already in place but the Championship winners haven’t met the Minimum Standards Criteria, so no play-off has taken place). The same old questions over the levels of funding for the Championship, the Minimum Standards Criteria and the sustainability of a second professional league will therefore continue to plague the game, as they have done for the past decade. Talks are ongoing about the make-up of the Championship, and there will be hope for an improved funding package. But the incongruence of the overlap between the professional and amateur games will seemingly remain, leaving us all to ponder whether a commercially viable professional second division will ever evolve… Let me know what you think. Am I missing something? #sportslaw #rugby #englandrugby https://lnkd.in/ecfAhybP