With the arrival of Premier Sports there is yet more fragmentation and a further dilution of rugby’s media profile.
The numbers watching matches on free to air are significant, compared to the embarrassingly small numbers who watch on paywall channels.
This is profoundly bad for the game.
The low profile for rugby inevitably impacts clubs and playing numbers. Diehard supporters will reluctantly pay up to watch but this is no way to attract a new audience to a sport which is facing an existential crisis.
And don’t listen to the RFU spin, any grass roots rugby club will tell you the truth abo...