Strategic Plan for Sevens Rugby

September 2006

Introduction

The promotion of Sevens has been instrumental in taking Rugby to new territories and regions. The continued growth of Sevens would help achieve two of the five IRB strategic aims:

Increased Participation in Rugby and Rugby re-entering the Olympic Games.

The IRB Sevens World Series has been in operation for six years. The Series was reviewed in 2003, at which time the structure was modified. In 2005 the IRB engaged the Sports Business Group at Deloitte’s to assess the viability of Sevens Rugby and the IRB Sevens World Series going forward.

The Series has had strategic drivers which relate to :

• Promoting the Game (Profile)

• Development of the Players, Coaches, Match Officials and Unions

• High Performance Development of Players, Coaches and Match Officials

• Commercially viable Tournaments

The Deloitte report clearly concludes that the Series should continue in its present format. However, achieving long term commercial sustainability is vital for both our Host and Participating Unions. The Strategic Plan for Sevens will focus heavily on the Series as the flagship around which the Sevens Game as a whole can develop.

Vision

Growth of Rugby through Sevens

Mission

Sevens to become an acknowledged and effective growth and development driver for Rugby throughout all Unions underpinned by a financially viable and successful IRB Sevens World

Series

VisionLeadership

TrustIntegrityRespect

TransparencyTeamwork

Accountability

Values

Strategic Areas

Player Development

Union Development

Participation

Profile

Return on Investment

Olympics

Strategic Goals

Strategic Goals

Return on Investment

Player Development

Union Development

Profile

Olympics Sevens becomes an Olympic participation sport

Financial goals for IRB, Host Unions and Participant Unions set and met with effective and efficient investment

Provision of world class international tournaments for both men and women which have a demonstrable effect on player development

Increased exposure of Sevens

Tournaments facilitate ability of Tier 2 and 3 Unions to compete with Tier 1 Unions

Participation Increased numbers of men and women playing Rugby

Player Development

• Indication that Sevens players progress to full international status

• Indication that Sevens players progress within professional Rugby

• Playing environments considered to be world class international events

• Unions provide supporting information of the player development benefits derived from playing in the IRB Sevens

• Unions to provide commentary and evidence on overall success with regard to player development, high performance initiatives and pathway schemes that include Sevens

Union Development

• IRB to annually track competitive balance ratings for IRB Sevens World Series

• Evaluation of numbers of coaches and referees from Tier 2 and below operating in the Series

• Qualification for IRB Sevens through core teams, regional qualification and invitation

� Validated increase in broadcast reach and ratings

� Validated increase in print/electronic media coverage

• Hosts provide attendance data and profiling research

• Numbers of satellite tournaments increased to planned _levels in each IRB Region

Profile

Key Performance Indicators

Participation

• Evidence of numbers playing Sevens increased worldwide

• Evidence of numbers playing Rugby increased worldwide

• Unions provide commentary on participation initiatives based around Sevens

• Unions provide commentary and evidence as to what Sevens contributes in terms of profile and grass roots participation that includes men and women

Return On Investment

• Annual analysis of financial performance of IRB Sevens for IRB, hosts and participants

• Performance against budgets

• Evidence of progress towards overall break-even

• In house and independent commercial partners satisfaction assessments to be performed regularly

Key Performance Indicators

• IRB strategic plan strategies and agreed actions undertaken

• Sevens accepted by the Rugby community as important and valid form of the Game in its own right

• Sevens accepted by IOC members as an important and valid form of the Game in its own right

Olympics

1. Player Development Strategies

1.1 Ensure Series Tournaments are highly competitive

1.2 Ensure Tournaments provide high standard training environments

1.3 Deliver high standard service provision for teams and officials at tournaments

1.4 Provide high performance playing environment

1.5 Provide high level officiating programmes to support player development

1.6 Provide learning opportunities for participating teams coaches and support ____personnel

2. Union Development Strategies

2.1 Ensure Tournaments meet KPIs for infrastructure and service delivery to the teams

2.2 Tournaments qualification criteria permits the inclusion of teams for development purposes

2.3 Provide coaching support to developing teams to ensure that they are competitive

2.4 Tournament tender process to include criteria for union operational and administrative development

2.5 Provide opportunities to develop more sophisticated commercial strategies for IRB, Host Unions and participating teams

3. Participation Strategies

3.1 Develop and invest in Series Satellite Tournaments

3.2 Establish performance based criteria for participating teams

3.3 Encourage participation in Sevens for men and women throughout the IRB Member Unions

3.4 Encourage the development of Sevens Tournaments for women and men throughout IRB Member Unions

4. Profile Strategies

4.1 Further develop broadcast strategy to increase coverage

4.2 Optimise international broadcast revenue for the series

4.3 Ensure consistent broadcast standards are met across all tournaments

4.4 Selected broadcast partner to meet annual broadcast reach KPIs

4.5 Produce a co-ordinated media strategy

4.6 Maintain and invest in high profile website

4.7 Encourage Union relationship with Government and non-Governmental organisations to invest in and raise the profile of the tournament in the region

5. Return On Investment Strategies

5.1 Develop financial goals for the Series and each Tournament

5.2 Effective budget management by IRB

5.3 Comprehensive audited financial reporting by Tournaments and the IRB

5.4 Continually review financial viability of Sevens

5.5 Develop sponsorship strategies and goals for the Series and Tournaments

5.6 Develop commercial partnerships for the IRB and Tournament Organisers

5.7 Maximise financial value of all Series Commercial inventory

� Identify an acceptable Series Sponsor

� Identify value added Sponsors

5.8 Provide certainty regarding Tournament Venues and Scheduling

5.9 Confirm eight Tournament Series

5.10 Utilise economic impact studies

6. Olympic Strategies

• See IRB Strategic & Operational Plan – Strategic Area 7

Appendix 1

• Details of IRB Strategies for Sevens Rugby

Player Development Strategies

1.1 Ensure Series Tournaments are highly competitive

We will do this by

- regularly updating and monitoring teams’ ranking for seeding purposes- producing competitive playing schedules for each Tournament- using performances in Satellite Sevens tournaments as a means selection- reviewing areas of the game to ensure high performance levels of Sevens are maintained

1.2 Ensure Tournaments provide high standard training environments

1.3 Deliver high standard service provision for teams and officials

We will do this by

- producing a comprehensive Hosting Guide which clearly outlines the level of service and standard offacilities which must be provided to the teams and officials

- regular monitoring of the services, training and playing facilities at each tournament- providing opportunities for team managers and players to give constructive feedback through

individual Tournament surveys and updating the Hosting Guide where necessary

Player Development Strategies (contd)

1.4 Provide high performance playing environmentWe will do this by

- ensuring the IRB’s specifications as laid out in the Hosting Guide are in place with particular emphasis on : � international standard changing facilities available for all teams� playing and training facilities are properly maintained and of a high standard� sufficient staff are provided for international match management� proper nourishment and refreshment is provided to teams and officials� high standard of provision of recovery and medical facilities

1.5 Provide high level officiating programmes to support player developmentWe will do this by- creating opportunities for Series Team Management and appointed referees to have group discussions- maintaining consistency in refereeing personnel throughout the Series- encouraging regular communication between team coaches and referees- holding comprehensive briefing sessions for all participating teams prior to each Tournament

Player Development Strategies (contd)

1.6 Provide learning opportunities for participating team coaches and support personnelWe will do this by

- providing opportunities for Series Teams to assist Regional Teams through coaching programmes- creating opportunities for coaching exchanges between teams- arranging workshops on areas of participation which are of concern to participating teams - provide IRB Training materials to enhance training programmes for developing Unions

Union Development Strategies

2.1 Ensure Tournaments meet KPIs for infrastructure and service delivery to the teamsWe will do this by- providing a detailed comprehensive Hosting Guide and set of KPIs to Host Unions- providing feedback to Host Unions following each Tournament

2.2 Tournaments qualification criteria permits the inclusion of teams for development purposesWe will do this by- selection of Regional teams to be based on results in Satellite Tournaments- working with Regional Associations to ensure that Satellite Tournaments are integrated with the Series

structures and provide the best possible Sevens development platform for Member Unions - monitoring the performance of development Teams each year to assess progress

2.3 Provide coaching support to developing teams to ensure that they are competitiveWe will do this by - creating opportunities for top team coaches to conduct coaching sessions with developing team coaches- providing all Unions with a Sevens programme to use within their development programmes for both

men and women

Union Development Strategies (contd)

2.4 Tournament tender process to include criteria for union operational and administrative developmentWe will do this by

- overseeing the organisational structure for Tournament arrangements- working closely with Tournament management personnel to develop Tournament operational skills- ensuring Tournament briefs provided to teams and officials are comprehensive

2.5 Provide opportunities to develop more sophisticated commercial strategies for IRB, Host Unions and participating teamsWe will do this by

- organising yearly meetings of Tournament Directors to exchange ideas on commercial strategies- identify areas for commercial opportunities for all stakeholders- conduct regular surveys of key Tournament sponsors to assess satisfaction levels on commercial issues

Participation Strategies

3.1 Develop and invest in Series Satellite TournamentsWe will do this by

- continuing to support Regional Satellite Tournaments through the Trust Grant process- provide Satellite Tournaments with assistance in arrangements for their tournaments- increase exposure of Satellite Tournaments through IRB media products

3.2 Establish performance based criteria for participating teamsWe will do this by

- keeping a comprehensive database of team performances throughout each Series

- producing performance ranking system based on a number of criteria including playing results,participation in Sevens related development programmes and team disciplinary record

Participation Strategies (contd)

3.3 Encourage participation in Sevens for men and women throughout the IRB Member Unions

3.4 Encourage the development of Sevens Tournaments for men and women throughout IRB Member Unions We will do this by

- producing a database of Sevens Competitions worldwide in which both men and women are playing competitive tournaments

- establishing which Unions do not have opportunities for participation in Sevens competitions for both menand women

- arranging opportunities for experienced Sevens coaches to provide assistance to Unions who do not havespecialist Sevens coaching available

- working with RDMs to assist in creating opportunities for Sevens competitions to be held in developingUnions for both men and women

Profile Strategies

4.1 Further develop broadcast strategy to increase coverageWe will do this by

- maximising free-to-air broadcast coverage where possible- building on existing RWC broadcast relationships

4.2 Optimise international broadcast revenue for the SeriesWe will do this by

- ensuring high class, exciting broadcast production of all Tournaments - maximising global distribution of a world class Series highlights programme

4.3 Ensure consistent broadcast standards are met across all TournamentsWe will do this by

- ensuring the Broadcast Management Company sets comprehensive guidelines for Tournament HostBroadcasters to follow and monitors both local and international broadcast performances

- ensuring professional standards of commentary and graphics provision are maintained throughout theSeries

Profile Strategies (contd)

4.4 Selected broadcast partner to meet annual broadcast reach KPIsWe will do this by - setting challenging annual KPIs for Series broadcast exposure- continually monitoring broadcast performances through annual analysis

4.5 Produce a co-ordinated media strategyWe will do this by - producing a comprehensive Visual Standards Manual- IRB’s Communications Department liaising closely with each Tournament on PR strategy- providing a detailed Series media information pack to all Host Unions- creating a database of all media attendees at Tournaments

4.6 Maintain and invest in high profile websiteWe will do this by - creating an exciting and vibrant website for the Series and individual Tournaments- maintaining and updating information and data on a regular basis- investigating all web related promotional and commercial opportunities for the Series

Profile Strategies (contd)

4.7 Encourage Union relationship with Government and non-Governmental organisations to invest in and raise the profile of the tournament in the regionWe will do this by

- providing Unions with information to assist in developing strategies to attract overseas visitors - working with existing Travel Agents to assist in promoting travel to other Tournaments in the Series- provide colourful and exciting promotional material which demonstrates the popularity and uniqueness

of a Sevens Tournament and the benefits which it can bring to a city or Region

Return on Investment Strategies

5.1 Develop financial goals for the Series and each Tournament

5.2 Effective budget management by IRB

5.3 Comprehensive audited financial reporting by Tournaments and the IRB

5.4 Continually reviewing financial viability of SevensWe will do this by

- working with Host Unions to ensure achievable financial goals are in place whilst maintaining high standards in organisation

- setting realistic and comprehensive budgets and ensuring these are monitored throughout the Series- providing comprehensive accounting reporting procedures for Host Unions - continually monitoring Participating Team and Host Union cost profiles- annual analysis of both Series and individual Tournament financial performance

Return on Investment Strategies (contd)

5.5 Develop sponsorship strategies and goals for the Series and Tournaments

5.6 Develop commercial partnerships for the IRB and Tournament Organisers

5.7 Maximise financial value of all Series Commercial Inventory→ identify an acceptable Series Sponsor→ identify value added sponsors

We will do this by

- identifying opportunities within the Series commercial programme to attract potential sponsors - working with Host Unions to ensure that Series Sponsorships allows them to maximise their existing local

sponsorship arrangements- assisting Host Unions and participating teams in identifying potential commercial partners and

sponsorship opportunities- develop a commercial strategy which maximises the revenue generation value of all Series commercial

inventory

Return on Investment Strategies (contd)

5.8 Provide certainty regarding Tournament Venues and Scheduling

5.9 Confirm eight Tournament SeriesWe will do this by

- reviewing existing Tournaments and working closely with Host Unions to ensure their ability to remain in the Series for a five year period

- identifying and confirming Tournament venues and dates in a timely manner to enable Host Unions to maximise commercial and promotional opportunities

- ensuring Agreements for Host and Participating Unions are in place in a timely manner

5.10 Utilise economic impact studiesWe will do this by

- obtaining market research results from Tournaments where these have been carried out- seeking Host Unions’ assistance in carrying out economic impact studies in new venues- providing results of studies to all Series Tournaments and participating teams- including results of studies in marketing and promotional materials