I was just listening to an interesting discussion on (men’s) rugby union on the Sports Agents podcast, which largely came down to a question of how the professional game should be positioned and marketed.

There was quite a lot of focus on what rugby union needs to do to engage more of the ‘Gen Z’ audience. I think last year’s EY report spooked a few people by showing rugby union as the 4th most popular sport in the UK overall, but not even in the top 20 for Gen Z. We should always take this kind of sweeping generational data with a pinch of salt, but there’s clearly a challenge there.

Focus on the physicality of rugby?

The consensus on the pod was that rugby needs to lean in more to the physical side of the game – the big hits, the contact, the size and power of the players.

I tend to agree – that physicality is rugby’s USP vs. a lot of other sports and I’m sure that kind of content would find a healthy audience on TikTok and YouTube. Actually, it already does, it’s just not what the RFU or Premiership Rugby focus on.

But what about participation?

But this does raise an interesting question, both in terms of growth strategy, positioning and also the overall role of governing bodies and (to a lesser extent) leagues in sport.

Essentially: do you grow the future fanbase/health of a sport by getting more young people to play it, or are we just looking to attract an audience?

Because the physicality angle that might be a great way to engage a young audience on social media is, at the same time, the thing that will discourage a lot of them from playing the sport.

It’s also a dilemma for the RFU, which has a clear responsibility to grow participation as well as protect players, and is dealing with well-documented issues and lawsuits around brain damage. There’s also a lot more to the game than just huge tackles.

Finding a balance?

There’s probably a balance that could be struck here: rather than going all-in on the “massive hits” side of the game, focus on the all-round size, strength, athleticism and skills of the players. Play into the Gen Z interest in fitness and gym culture. Maybe rugby union needs its version of the NFL Combine?

Rugby union is doing some of these things already, but it does feel like the professional club game needs to carve out a clearer positioning and identity if it wants to grow and thrive in years to come.