Sky TV CEO 'Comfortable' With Super Rugby Cutting Teams To 15

Sky TV is "comfortable" with the decision to cut Super Rugby from 18 to 15 teams next year, according to RADIO SPORT. New Zealand Rugby's major broadcast partner believes fewer matches will not have "any impact on them financially." CEO John Fellet said that games in South Africa do not attract "large" viewing numbers "due to the time zone." He said that fewer teams "over there" probably does not hurt the network, which has a "similar problem" with the Western Force because the team's evening matches take place after midnight in New Zealand. Meanwhile, Fellet is not "surprised" that calls from the Australian Rugby Union for a trans-Tasman Super Rugby competition have "fallen on deaf ears" (RADIO SPORT, 4/11).