World Champ Tax

2020 saw Springbok fans robbed of their chance to see their championship side in action, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. However, the Springboks have a plethora of games scheduled for 2023, facing some of World Rugby's top sides. They will play 6 games spread across 5 provinces and many would have been looking forward to seeing the World Champions in action, a side that has done so much for our rainbow nation.

Tickets for the two tests against Ireland sold out in record times. Loftus and Kings Park will be filled to the rafters, waiting to settle the score on who really is 'the worlds best team''. When I saw the price surge on tickets for these tests, I was quite surprised. I had expected the price to go up, but to be paying upwards of R1200 to sit in the upper echelons and corners of the stands seems really unreasonable.

There has been a lot of coverage in the media regarding the fees charged by SARU to the home unions for the rights to host the tests. I won't delve too much into that here, and whilst I'm sure it has played a role in the price surge, surely some common sense must also prevail in providing people with the chance to see their national side in action.

When Ronnie & I discussed this on the Podcast, Ronnie called it the 'World Champ Tax'. Basically SARU making hay whilst the sun is shining. No doubt the fact that the tickets sold out so quickly, won't have anyone in upper management blinking about a cost rethink. For a team that plays for South Africa and for the people, the ticket prices essentially gate-keep the Bokke from the large majority of the country they represent.

If one sits and really thinks about it, the Springboks are our national side. Tickets to see them are so expensive, so surely then there should be other means of ensuring the people of SA can see them in action? Unfortunately this is only possible with a pricey DSTV Premium subscription in the region of R1000.00. The SABC our national broadcaster doesn't hold the rights to broadcast the games. Yup, this is absurd I know. Look, I am well aware of the financial benefits SuperSport brings to South African rugby, however I do feel that the National side should be accessible to the nation

I have been fortunate enough to attend almost all the Springbok games in South Africa since 2011. One normally expects the tickets to be a little pricier for games against the All Blacks, usually reserved for Ellis Park. However in general I have found the tickets to be fairly reasonable, with certain stands quite discounted allow for a wide array of fans to attend the games.

A schematic of the proposed ticket prices for this years test against the All Blacks at Ellis Park had me almost spill my beer though. It is nice that they are ensuring everyone is broke from buying the tickets, so that no one can be robbed of anything outside of the stadium. Our dislike for hosting games in that area are well documented by now, but charging R1 500.00 for someone to sit behind the posts is ridiculous. If you agree that is rough, you won't be making your way into the main stands for anything less than R2 150.00 whilst opposite the tunnel with the sun in your eyes will almost cost you R3 000.00

My guess is that the All Blacks test in Cape Town will be comparable to this and I just can't justify it. Yes, we are the World Champions and yes SARU need funds to keep the Springboks at the top, but a 45% increase in ticket prices in just 1 year for the All Blacks test is a decision I simply can't get behind. I'd be pretty keen to hear everyone else's thoughts on the ticket prices, considering they did sell out so quickly. Drop a comment if you can.