Zila Mbekela’s Post

🏑 Qualifications for #paris2024 for Irish Sailing and Hockey Ireland 🏉 A first HSBC Sevens title for the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) Women’s 7s team ⚽ Another 1,000,000+ viewed video on TikTok from the Football Association of Ireland starring Ruesha Littlejohn The Olytico Irish Sport on Social Media Report for January 2024 - published by Sport for Business - is jam packed with a wealth of top class sporting success from across Irish sport. 👇 Link to the full report in the comments below #socialmediaanalysis #socialmedianalytics #sportsmarketing

Sky Sport has just announced the introduction of free-to-air Friday footy, and I couldn't be more thrilled about it! 🏉 This is a significant move, especially considering the current challenges facing rugby viewership in New Zealand. Over the past few years, we've seen a decline in Super Rugby viewership, coupled with stiff competition from other sports like NRL. But with this new initiative, there's hope for a resurgence in interest and support for rugby in our country. Let's delve into why this initiative is so crucial. Firstly, there's the matter of our international performance. Gone are the days of All Blacks dominance, and now we find ourselves battling for a top-three position in the world. Additionally, there's a noticeable rise in rugby's popularity in the northern hemisphere, with World Rugby actively seeking to break into the US market. However, one of the most concerning aspects is the decline in local participation numbers. Currently, there are only 32,429 adults playing rugby in New Zealand, compared to a staggering 73,000 participating in football. This trend underscores the urgent need for action to revitalize interest in the sport at the grassroots level. But here's where the silver lining lies: history has shown us that exposure plays a pivotal role in boosting participation. Just look at how cricket and football saw a surge in participation following major events like the World Cup in NZ. By showcasing rugby on free-to-air platforms, we have the opportunity to reignite interest and drive participation from the ground up. So, a huge shoutout to Sky for taking this bold step forward. Let's all rally behind this initiative and hope that it serves as a catalyst for positive change in the rugby landscape. 🌟 https://lnkd.in/gCvzmmgh

What would happen if rugby unions had to be ranked with both men's and women's rugby teams involved? Check out the full episode in the link in the bio or below

𝗙𝗜𝗫𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗘𝗦 𝗜 The 2024 Sportsman's Warehouse Premier Interschools season kicks off this weekend, promising another thrilling chapter in the traditional KZN rivalry between two formidable schoolboy rugby teams, Glenwood High School and Maritzburg College 🏉 Which team are you backing? 🔴🟢🟡 OR 🔴⚫️⚪️ Unlock the complete 2024 rugby season fixture list for the Sharks High Schools' Rugby Association now! Simply visit our website and click on the 𝗗𝗜𝗚𝗜𝗧𝗔𝗟 𝗠𝗔𝗚𝗔𝗭𝗜𝗡𝗘𝗦 tab to get your free copy today!! #pegasuspublishing

Sky Sport has just announced the introduction of free-to-air Friday footy, and I couldn't be more thrilled about it! 🏉 This is a significant move, especially considering the current challenges facing rugby viewership in New Zealand. Over the past few years, we've seen a decline in Super Rugby viewership, coupled with stiff competition from other sports like NRL. But with this new initiative, there's hope for a resurgence in interest and support for rugby in our country. Let's delve into why this initiative is so crucial. Firstly, there's the matter of our international performance. Gone are the days of All Blacks dominance, and now we find ourselves battling for a top-three position in the world. Additionally, there's a noticeable rise in rugby's popularity in the northern hemisphere, with World Rugby actively seeking to break into the US market. However, one of the most concerning aspects is the decline in local participation numbers. Currently, there are only 32,429 adults playing rugby in New Zealand, compared to a staggering 73,000 participating in football. This trend underscores the urgent need for action to revitalize interest in the sport at the grassroots level. But here's where the silver lining lies: history has shown us that exposure plays a pivotal role in boosting participation. Just look at how cricket and football saw a surge in participation following major events like the World Cup in NZ. By showcasing rugby on free-to-air platforms, we have the opportunity to reignite interest and drive participation from the ground up. So, a huge shoutout to Sky for taking this bold step forward. Let's all rally behind this initiative and hope that it serves as a catalyst for positive change in the rugby landscape. 🌟 https://lnkd.in/gCvzmmgh #RugbyRevival #SkySport #FreeToAirFooty

Update: The RFU has approved the structure of the Premiership and Championship for next season. Promotion/relegation will be subject to a two-legged play-off between the Premiership’s lowest team and the Championship winners, provided that the Championship winners meet the necessary Minimum Standards Criteria. In other words, the status quo will remain. Many had hoped for a revitalised, streamlined second tier to stimulate commercial growth, but this has not materialised, seemingly after opposition from some Championship clubs. This therefore feels a missed opportunity. But it was clear that the reported lack of engagement from the RFU and Premiership with the Championship clubs was always going to make meaningful change difficult. So where does this leave English club rugby? It is not clear that this news will stimulate significant investment into the Championship, but it does at least guarantee the existence of the current Championship clubs and maintains a route through to the top tier. But, as the past decade has shown, this matters little if there is no meaningful investment into the second tier and if there remain significant barriers to entry to the Premiership (a relegation play-off system is already in place but the Championship winners haven’t met the Minimum Standards Criteria, so no play-off has taken place). The same old questions over the levels of funding for the Championship, the Minimum Standards Criteria and the sustainability of a second professional league will therefore continue to plague the game, as they have done for the past decade. Talks are ongoing about the make-up of the Championship, and there will be hope for an improved funding package. But the incongruence of the overlap between the professional and amateur games will seemingly remain, leaving us all to ponder whether a commercially viable professional second division will ever evolve… Let me know what you think. Am I missing something? #sportslaw #rugby #englandrugby https://lnkd.in/ecfAhybP

Movement demands and physiological load of elite-international rugby sevens: A retrospective observational study of three competition tiers. Authors: Adriano Arguedas Soley, Diego Bustos Soto, Nic Gill, Rhonda Orr , Shane Ball Although research has enhanced our understanding of inter-tier differences in match demands within elite 15-a-side rugby union, there is very limited knowledge of the differences between tournament tiers of elite international rugby sevens (RS). This study provides an analysis of the demands of elite-international RS, considering differences by tier, position, round and match-involvement level. Substantial variation was observed in match demands by position with backs typically recording higher intensities. These findings may be used to prescribe player-specific training in line with expected competition demands. Read the full article at https://lnkd.in/g2MAdcj6

Legends of English Rugby are bowing out tonight when Northampton Saints host Saracens in the Premiership semi-final. It’s going to be au revoir for either Courtney Lawes and Lewis Ludlam from Northampton or Owen Farrell, Mako Vunipola and Billy Vunipola. The winners will only have 1 more week before they are across the channel too. Whichever side of the fence you sit on it's going to be an emotional evening. The bigger picture is that these 5 players are going to be lost to the English Club Game. They have a lot still to offer, they don't want to go but their clubs can't afford them. This is the real sadness. From what's been reported all 5 would rather stay here and see their career out over the next number of years. Questions have to be asked of the RFU and Premiership Rugby. How has the Premiership been overtaken by France and Japan as the richest places in the world to play rugby? Why can't we afford to pay our players more than France and Japan?

90% of people who completed our survey said that their business held fantasy sport competitions for men's sport but not for the women. Let's change that. The Guinness Women's Six Nations kicks-off THIS weekend and we've been thinking... what's the best way to get people involved and immersed with the tournament this year?   Our answer... we've set up a Six Nations Fantasy Rugby League powered by Energia so YOU can get more invested, learn about the players and invite your friends, family and colleagues to get invovled too! Not to mention there will be weekly prizes to be won which include match tickets and much more!   We do it for men's sport... so why not the women's too? Interestingly enough, we surveyed our audience around the concept of Fantasy Leagues and it was highlighted that the majority of businesses tend to participate in the men's versions of these but very few do the same for the women. In fact - Get involved here: https://lnkd.in/eUH2psRj

Our rugby blog for the week is now published and live. Today, our discussion is about the growth and development of professional rugby in Japan - as a business division of major corporations. "Over the past few decades, Japan has seen significant growth in its professional rugby scene, transforming from a country where rugby was a niche sport to one that is now recognized on the global stage. The development of professional rugby in Japan is closely tied to its unique structure, where teams are owned and heavily funded by wealthy corporations. This article explores the evolution of professional rugby in Japan, the role of corporate ownership, and ranks the top 10 wealthiest teams in the Japan Rugby League One." To read more of the article, click on the link below: https://lnkd.in/gztiU5kr #sportscontent #blog #writing #reading #rugbyunion #sportsmarketing #marketing #business #sportsbiz