It's quite funny to see how everyone is pointing the finger to South Africa, when it was SA that was the main financial contributor to this tournament for the last decade. Now that SA is in financial difficulty, they are getting the main blame for everything wrong with Super Rugby? That's a bit short sighted.
Let's break it down.
The Fans:
The fans in stadiums in South Africa are primarily middle class to upper class white South Africans. I am one of them. I make it a rule to attend at least one Super Rugby match a year, and if possible, one Springbok game a year. And I have done that continuously since 2004. Even though I live 300+km away from the nearest stadium where Super Rugby is being played (Loftus Versfeld).
Money is here one of the main reasons the numbers have dropped. For me to drive from my house to Loftus will cost me at least a R800.00 in fuel, R200.00 in toll fees and then around R200.00 for my ticket. That is already R1200.00 just to watch the match and then I'll have to double the fuel and toll costs as I have to drive back home, so in total that will be R2400.00. That is about 220 Aus $ / 230 NZ$ / 130 Pounds. It's becoming way too expensive to go to the stadium, so most people stay at home.
Political Situation:
Not just Quotas are currently the issue, but also the ever-growing violent protests by residents, our National Broadcaster's media censorship and the complete incompetence by our Government, and especially our President.
The Quota situation, is perhaps only this year playing a main role as to why people are losing interest, as it is the first year where there are actual signs that certain Black players of a lower quality is getting selected ahead of more talented White/Coloured players, and here I'm not just talking about the Springboks.
The Players:
We are now used to the mass exodus that happens in SA, so we can't really be surprized when we see the list of players going abroad. In some cases, there is a sign of relief that certain players will be leaving, like in the Bulls' case with getting rid of Werner Kruger and Dean Greyling. It's a way to get rid of the dead weight, and as
@saulan has already shown, they get a lot more money abroad. And why wouldn't they? They are proffesionals, they use rugby to make a living, and ensure they have a good life by the time they aren't able to play rugby anymore. Take a guy like Werner Swanepoel as an example. The former Springbok went abroad when he was around 31 years old, got paid in Pounds while playing in England, and then after he finished his playing career in the UK, returned to SA. The better currency rate meant that he came back a millionaire, used that money into some decent investments and is now a proud owner of a very successful franchise in SA.
How do we get everything back to the way it was? I don't think it's going to be that easy.
Firstly, we must get rid of the conference system, as has been mentioned in so many posts and threads on the Forum. Go back to the old recipe. It worked and didn't need to be changed!!
Secondly, SARU will have to address this Quota system and stop being bullied by our government. Hopefully after the August 3 elections, we might see some changes happening now that the people are physically showing their frustration with the ruling party. That, along with organizations like Afriforum and Solidariteit trying to apply to WR, the International Sports Court and even the UN, this problem might be a thing of the past very soon.
Third, I agree that the NZ central contract system is a great idea, and that SARU should adopt the same system, but that will only work if the players gets a better incentive. Perhaps if SARU and Supersport can make some sort of deal to get more from the broadcasting funds, to pay the players some sort of kick-back, sponsorship payment.
