The most desired partnership confirmed
NEWS: The most desired partnership in the game finally became a reality.
The United Rugby Championship confirmed on Wednesday that the South African Rugby Union has become the league’s sixth shareholder.
SA joins the Irish, Italian, Scottish, and Welsh unions as shareholders in Pro Rugby Championship DAC, the company that operates the league.
SARU’s relationship with the competition dates back to 2018 when the Cheetahs and Southern Kings joined the PRO14.
In 2021, the launch of the United Rugby Championship introduced the four South African franchises – the Lions, Stormers, Sharks, and Bulls.
Since then, the URC has achieved significant growth across broadcast audiences, digital engagement, and match attendances, with SARU and its teams playing a pivotal role in that success.
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“There is no doubt about the hugely positive impact South African has had on our league, and confirmation of their addition as a shareholder was always part of the roadmap,” Martin Anayi, URC CEO said.
“In 2018 and again in 2021, South Africa showed vision and courage in reshaping where their teams competed, and this milestone is a testament to that foresight.
“From a fan’s perspective, nothing changes. But from a business standpoint, our URC team will now work even more closely with South African teams, partners, broadcasters, and stakeholders to continue elevating the league.
“This alignment across both hemispheres will create day-to-day efficiencies and open the door to exploring new ideas at a faster pace.
“On behalf of our chairman, David Lynn, and the rest of our board, we extend our thanks to Rian Oberholzer, Mark Alexander, and the team at SARU for reaching this point. Our five territories remain fully committed to the URC’s vision, and we look forward to building on the successes of the past four years.”
Rian Oberholzer, CEO of SARU, said: “This is red letter day for South African rugby and marks the completion of a journey that began eight years ago when we first contemplated a northern hemisphere future. There have been doubters over the years but the vision we shared with Martin Anayi and the URC team has now come to pass and we look forward to growing the competition as full partners with our colleagues in the north.
“The competition has gone from strength-to-strength and with four different winners in the first four seasons of our participation it has proved itself as arguably the most competitive league in rugby. It has been good for our rugby and we look forward to many more years of success.”
