Homeward bound?

[Wombles]

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2021/feb/22/rugby-union-british-irish-lions-south-africa-tour-relocate-home-tour

I will and always will remain a ‘lions are a touring team’ person. However these are unique times and after everything that has happened over the last year perhaps a one off home tour would be exactly what the doctor ordered. It would be a absolutely phenomenal one off that would have stadiums, pubs/clubs/rugby clubs bars full generating huge income for rugby both professionally and at grass roots throughout the land...whilst also generating huge excitement. Ally this with the face there is a large SA expat community then both teams will have ample support to tap into.

World champions v the Lions in a one off home nations tour? What is not to like or equally realise that this is a chance for a huge success beyond parallel.

[MarleyWasp]

The reality is that at the moment Rugby needs every penny it can get. If we can maximize income by holding the tour here then it's a no brainer. If South Africa cannot tour due to the SA variant, then let's play France.

[Heathen]

The reality is that at the moment Rugby needs every penny it can get. If we can maximize income by holding the tour here then it's a no brainer. If South Africa cannot tour due to the SA variant, then let's play France.

David, I totally agree with you about rugby needing every penny it can get but, would the Lions v France be a big draw in the UK?

(On a totally parochial subject, the news today that the Ricoh could be fully back in business from June, is a real boost for Wasps.)

[hookender]

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2021/feb/22/rugby-union-british-irish-lions-south-africa-tour-relocate-home-tour

I will and always will remain a ‘lions are a touring team’ person. However these are unique times and after everything that has happened over the last year perhaps a one off home tour would be exactly what the doctor ordered. It would be a absolutely phenomenal one off that would have stadiums, pubs/clubs/rugby clubs bars full generating huge income for rugby both professionally and at grass roots throughout the land...whilst also generating huge excitement. Ally this with the face there is a large SA expat community then both teams will have ample support to tap into.

World champions v the Lions in a one off home nations tour? What is not to like or equally realise that this is a chance for a huge success beyond parallel.

Totally agree . Weren’t the first tours to help raise funds / interest for the SH? Think you can’t argue that we need it here at the moment

[MarleyWasp]

The reality is that at the moment Rugby needs every penny it can get. If we can maximize income by holding the tour here then it's a no brainer. If South Africa cannot tour due to the SA variant, then let's play France.

David, I totally agree with you about rugby needing every penny it can get but, would the Lions v France be a big draw in the UK?

Why wouldn't it be? This is undoubtedly the best, most exciting team France have had in many years. Plus traveling to SA, Australia or NZ isn't something every Rugby fan has the money to do. It would give those fans the chance to see the Lions play.

[hookender]

Looks like pressing ahead with it

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/rugbyunion/article-9288743/The-Lions-ask-Government-help-host-Test-series-against-South-Africa-summer.html

[Neils]

Asking for taxpayers to underwrite it. No thanks - pay for it yourselves or cancel.

[Heathen]

Asking for taxpayers to underwrite it. No thanks - pay for it yourselves or cancel.

Agreed.

If it were to be a 4 test series v SA, with a match in each of Dublin, Edinburgh, Cardiff and HQ, then assuming stadia can be full, the income will pay for the tour plus more.

[Peej]

But who gets the money from this? Is it divided between the unions? Are the Lions their own "thing", like the BaaBaas?

If they can't tour, and they can't play SA, cancel it. The players don't need more rugby, and I'm not sure the fans do either. 

[Wiltshire Wasp]

If they can't tour, and they can't play SA, cancel it. The players don't need more rugby, and I'm not sure the fans do either.

I agree with this.

[DGP Wasp]

Really mixed feelings about this.   I love the Lions and really look forward to it every time.  Hopefully one day I will get to go on a tour myself.  I'd hate to see it cancelled, but at the same time I'm not sure I want to see it go ahead in some kind of watered down version of what I know and love.  If we can get SA over here and play tests against the Lions then I think I could get on board with that in the circumstances.  A test series pitting France against the best of the rest of the six nations, which is effectively what it would be doesn't cut it though.

And spare a thought for the South African players.  For the SH, playing against the Lions is still a big deal, and coming only once every 12 years, it is an opportunity players are only likely to get once in their careers.  If they miss out this year, do we roll that tour over to 2025, and then continue with Australia in 2029 and NZ in 2033, or would SA have to wait for their turn to come around again in 2033??

[Bloke in North Dorset]

Asking for taxpayers to underwrite it. No thanks - pay for it yourselves or cancel.

+1

The risk is a new variant and the government pulls the plug on fans attending or even the games. If they can't get insurance they should cancel.

The Lions touring in UK isn't a normal part of our social and sporting fabric like, say, Wimbledon, so shouldn't be underwritten by the tax payer.

I'm not sure Wimbledon should be, but its at least a different argument.

[hookender]

Shouldn’t just be UK government underwriting it anyway. At least 1/4 in theory would need to be covered by Irish. That’s assuming the warm up game is included as a Lions test proper.

Might also come down to Scottish and Welsh assemblies agreeing also .

Will be a miracle if you could get Two govts to agree plus possibly SA govt ( after all presumably they will still benefit financially from tv rights).

[Skippy]

A couple of things worth considering are the revenue that it would create for rugby and the tax receipts it could generate for the govt.

On the first, I would expect total gate receipts for a home tour would be higher than they would have been, even in a normal year in SA. This raises the prospect of both the home unions and the SA union being able to generate some decent and much needed income. Cancelling the tour and having no income makes no sense.

On the tax front, every £1m of ticket sales would include £167k of VAT. Then there's all the booze, food, corporate hospitality that would generate further VAT sales, as well as alcohol taxes. All of this would be served and catered for by a sector that's been on the bones of its arse for the last 12 months and kept on life support up by tons of taxpayers' cash.  Given the potential upside for the Treasury if the tour happens, asking it to underwrite it isn't exactly barmy. Let's be realistic, no insurer is likely to touch this with a socially-distanced bargepole and the unions don't have the spare cash to self insure.

I also wouldn't be surprised if the govt is promising to underwrite the hosting of the Euros. UEFA is going to need a single host, rather than having super-spreader teams jaunting all over Europe. And it's going to need a host that has a reasonable chance of having delivered widespread vaccination. Step forward the UK. But, as it is not without risk, so it'll need underwriting -- most probably by the govt.

In short, if you want to make decent money, you have to accept/take risk. If you want risk free returns, then expect lousy returns (if any at all).

The decision here will be taken in Westminster, so it should be fairly easy to get the devolved legislatures on side. The Union is paying and offering you bread and circuses -- so what's not to like? The Welsh will be onside as they love rugby, but Wee Jimmy Kranky will probably be a pain. Don't be surprised if she asks for a second bung through the Barnett formula and then claims that it proves how much wealthier they will be after independence.

[Trevs Big Tackle]

Is anyone high up in the Lions organisation a Tory donor? If not, it's probably a good time to make a little campaign donation wink wink.