Six Nations and Sanzaar agree to pool media and commercial rights

The Six Nations and Sanzaar unions have agreed to sell their media rights and commercial deals collectively for the first time, according to the Guardian. The agreement introduces a revenue-sharing model linking major northern and southern hemisphere rugby properties, with the unions seeking to increase the income they generate from broadcasting and sponsorship.

Under the arrangement, southern hemisphere nations will receive a share of profits generated by the Six Nations and British & Irish Lions tours. European countries will, in turn, benefit from broadcast and sponsorship deals associated with the Rugby Championship and the Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry series between New Zealand and South Africa.

A new rights management agency will oversee sales, the report said. That creates a common sales structure for the participating unions, rather than leaving each set of properties commercially separate. The supplied report does not identify the agency or explain how it will be governed by the organisations involved.

The Guardian describes the arrangement as the first of its kind in sport. Its central feature is not simply collective selling, but the sharing of financial benefits across competitions in both hemispheres. That would give participating countries an interest in commercial proceeds from rugby properties beyond those in which they directly compete.

The scope extends beyond television coverage to commercial agreements, including sponsorship. That distinction matters because the unions are seeking growth across more than one income stream, rather than relying solely on broadcast contracts. However, the available report does not set out how different categories of rights will be packaged or offered to prospective buyers.

For broadcasters and sponsors, a shared sales operation could create a different route to negotiating access to these rugby competitions. Collective management does not, by itself, establish whether rights will be sold together in every market or remain available separately. The report provides no details about territorial packages, exclusivity or arrangements for individual competitions.

The financial terms also remain unspecified in the supplied material, including the proportions each participant will receive and any revenue targets. While growing income is the stated ambition, the agreement alone does not establish how much additional money it will produce. Its financial impact will depend on the commercial deals ultimately secured under the model.

Attention now turns to how the new agency puts collective selling and revenue sharing into practice. Details of its mandate, the sales timetable and the treatment of individual properties will be important in assessing the agreement’s reach. On the information reported so far, the clear change is a shared commercial approach across the participating unions.