r/superrugby

This idea might not be the most popular and I have been thinking about other “possible” expansion options super rugby could have if they are serious about developing pacific talent and not just pissing money up the wall.

I wonder if super rugby have ever looked at New Caledonia as an expansion location and if it would be viable long term. Everyone focuses on the Pacific Islands or Japan, but New Caledonia sits in a unique sweet spot—geographically close, culturally tied to France, and has developed some great athletes in their history. The French system has a history of identifying and developing raw talent, and there’s a pipeline of New Caledonian players who either drift into mainland France or fall through the cracks entirely. A Super Rugby franchise could capture that talent early and keep it in the region.

What makes it even more compelling is the potential fusion between French-style rugby structure and Pacific flair. You’d effectively be blending disciplined, system-driven development with the natural athleticism and instinctive play that defines players from places like Fiji, Tonga, and Samoa. That combination is already proven at the international level—France has benefited massively from Pacific heritage players—so why not build a team around that identity from day one? It could become one of the most entertaining sides in the competition.

There’s also a strategic upside for Super Rugby itself. The competition has been searching for identity and expansion could add something new, not just another Aussie or Moana dumpster fire. A New Caledonian team would open pathways into the French rugby ecosystem, potentially creating partnerships with Top 14 clubs, Pro D2 and academies. That’s a commercial and developmental angle that doesn’t currently exist, and it could make the competition more globally relevant.

Financially, it wouldn’t be without challenges.. small population, infrastructure questions, travel logistics—but it’s not unrealistic either. With backing from French rugby bodies, local government, and potentially private investors, plus the ability to draw talent from across the Pacific, it could be sustainable. More importantly, it wouldn’t just be another expansion team—it would be an interesting addition to an untapped location with bit of a French influence/alignment.

With Moana Pasifika folding, Super Rugby is expected to stay at 10 teams for now, but the idea of expansion seems with at least the cheetahs pushing to join the competition.

Given the Cheetahs have been persistent in trying to get themselves back into a top-level competition, would you support bringing in South African provincial teams like the Cheetahs, Boland, Griquas, or Pumas if Super Rugby ever expands again?

Or is keeping it at 10 the right move, even if it means the iconic Super 14 format could make a comeback in some form?

A 10-team competition featuring 18 home-and-away matches and an opening of borders either side of the Tasman Sea to free up the opportunity for the likes of Beauden Barrett – and others – to play in Australia and still be able to pull on the All Blacks jersey, and vice versa.

These are just a couple of the ideas being discussed – and agitated for – by Super Rugby officials eager to breathe life into a competition described as “ho-hum” by some of the game’s top brass.

With Moana Pasifika running out of time in their bid to keep the lights on for a seventh season, modelling is under way to ensure the Super Rugby competition rediscovers its mojo.

The Australian understands it’s the preference of most clubs on either side of the ditch that the tournament shift to an 18-match season. Currently, the 11-team competition is a 14-match tournament, which has widely been thought of as awkward by Super Rugby officials ever since the Rebels were cut in mid-2024.

Not only would that allow for an equal competition, it would also help most teams’ bottom lines by allowing for a minimum of nine home games.

Another idea, by local broadcaster Stan, is for a conference system to return that would guarantee Australia’s presence in the finals, The Australian understands. The last Australian presence in a Super Rugby final was in 2014, when the Waratahs edged the Crusaders for the maiden title.

Super Rugby CEO Jack Mesley declined to comment on the future of Moana Pasifika, who are also after a new coach after All Blacks great Tana Umaga joined Dave Rennie’s New Zealand team.

It’s understood Super Rugby officials hope to be able to confirm its draw by August, especially with Allianz Stadium to be in demand as the NRL’s South Sydney Rabbitohs prepare to return to the venue.

Just as pressing is turning around Super Rugby’s plummeting appeal. While the Wallabies and All Blacks had no trouble selling out Tests last year, with Rugby Australia expected to announce a huge profit at their annual meeting this month off the back of the gate-breaking British & Irish Lions series, the first half of the calendar year continues to be a troubling issue for both national unions.

Most Super Rugby officials have welcomed a Super Rugby commission and Mesley’s appointment as the tournament’s chief executive, but clubs are concerned he could be limited in his effectiveness because all the power remains with Rugby Australia and New Zealand Rugby national bodies.

“We don’t think the commission has gone far enough,” one New Zealand Super Rugby CEO said. “More independence is needed. Jack’s been a breath of fresh air, and he’s had a great competition view, but anything that happens with the format is reserved for the national unions.

“Seldom do they talk about what’s of benefit for the Super Rugby competition. They see it as a development competition rather than a top-tier, commercial product. They’re not intentionally being difficult, but they can’t take their All Blacks and Wallabies hats off.”

Currently, NZR won’t pick players playing offshore. And RA high-performance director Peter Horne last week was reported as saying a maximum of three players could be selected from overseas, as per amendments to the policy four years ago. He was quoted last August saying the Giteau Law, allowing Australians playing overseas to be selected for the Wallabies, was now “kind of redundant” and national coach Joe Schmidt had “no impediment” to selecting whomever he wanted.

The resistance to opening up the borders remains two-fold: neither governing body wants its players to abandon the competition, and it’s also thought keeping players at home ensures everyone will be best prepared for the international arena – the stage that remains the main money-spinner for the respective unions.

But Super Rugby officials increasingly want players to still be able to be picked for their national teams even if they are playing on the other side of the ditch.

Renewed calls for the relaxation of the border policy come off the back of Barrett’s comments early last year that any anyone playing Super Rugby should remain eligible to play Test rugby for their home country.

“I’d like to think that in Super Rugby in however many years’ time, whatever countries are involved in Super Rugby, at a national level they can be eligible to represent their country,” the two-time World Rugby Player of the Year said.

Look to the strong start to former All Blacks winger George Bridge’s life at the Western Force, and James O’Connor’s successful one-year stint at the Crusaders in 2025 where he helped the franchise win a title, as success stories from trans-Tasman border swaps.

Officials also believe a fixed salary cap spend for every team across the competition would ensure the competition becomes more competitive. But if that was to occur, RA and NZR would have to blow up the way they contract players because national top-ups for their Test stars mean every team operates with a different spend.

While the Super Rugby agreement is locked up until 2030, meetings are planned this month as officials gather in Christchurch as Super Round – with all games in the city – returns for the first time since 2024.

With the news in the past 24 hours that Moana Pasifika will disband after the 2026 season due to ongoing financial and operational challenges, I’ve been thinking less about culture or identity and more about the market structure they were placed into.

At a fundamental level, the biggest issue was not identity or concept. It was market competition. Moana Pasifika were based in Auckland, which already has an established Super Rugby franchise in the Blues, a mature sponsorship ecosystem, and entrenched media attention. In that environment, Moana were always operating as a secondary rugby product in a saturated market. That matters commercially. Sponsors prioritise incumbents, media coverage flows toward established brands, and even matchday relevance becomes harder when you are not the primary team in the city.

So the question becomes whether the model was ever structurally viable in that location.

One alternative that stands out is a full relocation to Honolulu, Hawaii.

Unlike Auckland, Honolulu is not a shared Super Rugby market. There is no competing franchise, no established hierarchy within the same competition, and no need to fight for rugby-specific attention against an entrenched local team. That alone fundamentally changes the commercial positioning. Instead of being one of multiple rugby products in the same city, Moana Pasifika would immediately become the primary elite rugby brand in that market.

That shift matters more than it sounds. Being the only top tier rugby team in a city means you control the local sponsorship narrative rather than competing for residual spend. Corporate partners who want access to sport in that region have a single clear option. Matchdays become the central rugby event in the city rather than a competing fixture on a crowded calendar. You are no longer trying to carve out space, you are defining the space.

Honolulu also opens a different commercial pathway entirely. It provides access to U.S. based sponsors, streaming platforms, and corporate partners operating in a significantly larger economy than New Zealand or the Pacific Islands. Even if rugby remains a niche sport in the U.S., the value of being a unique “Pacific rugby product in America” is materially different from being a mid-tier team in a saturated Super Rugby city.

From a broadcast perspective, Honolulu is also more stable. The infrastructure is already in place for professional sport production, and evening kickoff times locally translate into afternoon or early evening windows in New Zealand and Australia, which are still viable for Super Rugby Pacific audiences. Rather than fragmenting the broadcast product, it potentially expands it into a trans-Pacific time slot that does not currently exist.

Travel is often raised as the major objection, but in reality it is not outside the existing bounds of the competition. Trips to Honolulu would sit in a similar category to the longest current away fixtures such as Dunedin to Perth. It is long haul travel, but not a new category of burden for Super Rugby teams. With proper scheduling, particularly clustering away fixtures into tours rather than single trips, the logistical impact can be managed.

The more important distinction is not distance, but direction. Teams are already travelling long distances across Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific. Honolulu simply becomes another node in that network rather than an outlier.

Of course, there are risks. Rugby is not a mainstream sport in the U.S., and building consistent match attendance would not be guaranteed. However, the current Auckland model also did not guarantee commercial sustainability, and it operated in a far more saturated environment. The difference is that Honolulu offers a clearer pathway to becoming the primary product in a new market rather than a secondary product in an existing one.

So the real question is whether Moana Pasifika’s challenge was ever about execution, or whether placing them in Auckland locked them into a structurally uncompetitive market position from the start. A relocation to Honolulu would not solve every issue, but it would fundamentally change the commercial equation they are operating within.

That may have been the missing variable all along.

Great last 55minutes by the Force to come back from 19 - 0. Crusaders almost pipped it in the end like they've done so many times before.

Sup fans, I’m looking to sell 3x stables tickets for the Friday night game (Saders v Tahs) at super round, 75nzd for all three plus international transfer fees if coming from an nz account (I’m Aussie) message me if you’re interested