New owners for Kings
SPOTLIGHT: An exciting new era has dawned for the Southern Kings with the announcement of the proudly Eastern Cape side’s proposed new owners.
The Southern Kings invited a new title sponsor for next three year period and will also achieve a historical milestone by becoming the first black-owned rugby franchise in the country.
Binding offers have been submitted by the relevant parties, with SARU EXCO approval and other transaction closing conditions set to take place over the coming weeks.
Consortium – a group of like-minded business people have rallied together to pool resources to build rugby talent in the region – Loyiso Dotwana said the community deserves a rugby team which it can be proud of.
“We want to build a professional and competitive team for the long run. Our long-term ambition is to achieve incremental growth which ultimately will result in the Southern Kings winning the PRO14 Championship. By creating an academy and team here, we want to retain the Eastern Cape’s talent. This is the home of black rugby – our team will promote social cohesion in South African rugby,” said Dotwana.
The consortium has entered into discussions with the Nelson Mandela University with regards to reviving the Rugby Academy and thus providing incubation and training for the team. Further announcements in this regard will be made in due course
“This places the franchise in a position it has never been before. We now have a long-term commitment from a sponsor and we are able for the first time, to plan and build a sustainable franchise for the long run,” said Charl Crous, Chief Operations Officer of the Southern Kings.
“We want Nelson Mandela Bay to be the country’s sporting destination of choice,” said Executive Mayor Athol Trollip.
“Rugby is a critical part of that, which is why we need strong clubs and unions that nurture, retain and promote local talent. This is a new era for the Southern Kings, after years of travails and challenges. With a sponsor committed to this initiative, the trajectory is only up. The Metro is proud to support the next chapter for our Southern Kings, and requests that every resident get behind the team on its way to PRO14 victory,”
Their first home game in the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium will be on 16 September when the Southern Kings take on Ireland’s Ulster Rugby and again on September 22 when they take on Glasgow Warriors (Scotland).
The Southern Kings initially came into existence in 2009 for the British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa and were one of the first international teams to play at the newly built Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
The Southern Kings stood their ground as a proudly Eastern Cape team when they played Super Rugby in 2013, 2016 and 2017, before joining the PRO14 Championship for the 2017/18 season of the European competition. The PRO14 Championship features top clubs from Ireland, Wales, Scotland, Italy and South Africa (Cheetahs and Southern Kings).
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