RWCL Chief Rubbishes Financial Shortfall, Signs Radio Partner

Claims that this year’s Rugby World Cup in New Zealand could be heading for a significant financial shortfall have been rubbished by event chief Martin Snedden.

Snedden, the CEO of Rugby NZ 2011 Ltd., stated that an investigation by the New Zealand Herald was “disingenuous and misleading” after it reported that the Rugby World Cup would cost NZ$1.2bn (US$962m) and generate just NZ$700m ($561m) in direct economic returns.

He stated that the Herald’s figures had “inexplicably” ignored almost NZ$270m ($216.5m) in revenue from ticket sales and incorrectly included stadium construction costs and upgrades to port and airport infrastructure.

Snedden added: “There are no ‘white elephants’. In most instances, Rugby World Cup 2011 has simply acted as a catalyst to accelerate improvements that would have occurred anyway, albeit possibly a little bit later. Future events such as the FIFA U-20 World Cup and Cricket World Cup 2015 will enjoy these benefits with no additional capital outlay.

“Then there is the potential for ongoing post-event economic benefits to New Zealand’s tourism and business sectors if leveraging initiatives during the tournament bear fruit down the track. Studies on other major events, including the Sydney Olympics (in 2000) show these can be considerable.”

In other news, Rugby World Cup Limited (RWCL) has granted MediaWorks Radio broadcast rights to Rugby World Cup 2011 in New Zealand.

Under the deal MediaWorks Radio will provide listeners with match updates, expert opinion and analysis across its stable of stations broadcast to an audience in excess of 1.4 million.

The deal also enables a wide range of promotional opportunities for Rugby World Cup 2011 commercial partners to leverage their association with the Tournament throughout New Zealand.

RWCL Managing Director Mike Miller said: “We are delighted that MediaWorks Radio has joined the extensive family of Rugby World Cup 2011 broadcasters.

“Wall to wall coverage across New Zealand will give fans an unprecedented opportunity to engage with a Tournament that is firmly established as one of the world’s premier sporting events.”

MediaWorks Radio General Manager of Talk Jana Rangooni added: “We’re excited to be able to provide coverage of Rugby World Cup 2011 across RadioLIVE and LIVESport with Martin Devlin leading our coverage alongside an exceptional line up of dedicated sports journalists.”