Steve Hansen has been vocal about troubling finances among some national rugby unions.GETTY IMAGES
All Blacks coach Steve Hansen made a "not-so-subtle jibe" at the Rugby Football Union's refusal to share revenue from its int'l matches and said that the money available to players in the northern hemisphere is "making his job more difficult," according to Clancy & Lowe of the LONDON TIMES. Hansen has been "vocal in recent years" in stating his belief that int'l rugby "could be in trouble, with teams such as Australia and Samoa struggling as their finances are not as strong as England's." He said, "It would be good if you guys shared a bit -- fill that stadium up with 80,000 people, give us half the day's takings would be good." Northern-hemisphere unions keep revenue from autumn tests that take place in the official int'l window, while the southern-hemisphere unions keep it from June tests. Twickenham is owned by the RFU and is "a big money-earner." Revenue for Saturday's game between England and New Zealand is expected to be more than £10M ($13.1M) from ticket sales, TV, sponsorship and hospitality. The New Zealand Rugby Union does not own a national stadium and "has been pushing for a different split of the global rugby economy." Hansen has been calling for the New Zealand government to use taxpayers' money to fund the All Blacks. The British & Irish Lions tour last year helped the NZRU turn a loss of NZ$7.5M into a profit of NZ$33.4M, although that tour is only once every 12 years. An RFU spokesperson said, "The commercial model for rugby is set by World Rugby. When England play in New Zealand, the NZRU keeps all the revenue" (LONDON TIMES, 11/5).
