Today sees the first meeting of the power players in European rugby since last week’s dramatic signing of apparently conflicting broadcast deals with Sky and BT Vision.
Aviva Premiership and leading French Clubs will join their long time colleagues from Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Italy at the Board meeting of European Rugby Cup Limited in Dublin to begin the process of shaping how the landscape of European Rugby will look after this season.
Discussions will take place after talk in the media of ‘dazzling new competitions,’ of the long standing value of the Heineken Cup and of multi-million deals that have the power to transform rugby in the northern hemisphere.
The battle lines appear similar to those in soccer before the changes that produced the Champions’ League and Europa League that now dominate.  A lesson which unions will be keen to emphasise though is the detrimental impact which the rise of the clubs has had on the international game.
Stadia at the Aviva Stadium and Wembley are much more likely to fill now for a Champions’ League tie as opposed to a World Cup qualifying match, yet the IRFU is on record as stating that 80% of revenues into Irish Rugby are drawn through international as opposed to provincial or club activity.
The deal with BT Vision delivers more in terms of cash but has been brought to the table by the bigger and more powerful clubs as opposed to the overall group.  That presents challenges but the possible 50% lift in terms of overall income, as well as the insurance against the possible departure, through choice or legislative restriction, of Heineken may prove too attractive to ignore.
Victory for one side does not mean defeat for the other and threats of walk outs are more likely to prove just that.
Change is rarely welcomed with open arms but it does come about in sport as in any other area.  The though ten years ago that the ‘European Cup’ could be won by a team that finished fourth in their domestic league would have been scoffed at as unthinkable.  Now much of the narrative around the conclusion to the domestic seasons in the top flight European leagues revolves around who will finish third or fourth and claim a spot in the financial goldmine that is the Champions’ League.
That was driven by broadcasting, as will be the next phase of European Rugby.  It may never be that the 100 million who sit down to watch Man City and Real Madrid tonight will tune into Leinster against Toulouse but the numbers will likely grow at a significant rate in the coming years and that must be a good thing for the sport.
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