Supporters watch the Springboks beat the Wallabies at Cape Town Stadium in a Rugby Championship second round clash. Looking ahead to the All Blacks tour, the writer asks if the price of rugby is too high for the average supporter.
Image: Ayanda Ndamane Independent Media
For the first time in years, the All Blacks are touring South Africa in a full, multi-match series. It is being positioned as rugby’s greatest rivalry: a moment that should, in theory, bring the country together.
It is precisely the kind of occasion that transcends sport: full stadiums, shared conversations, and a sense of national pride that cuts across income and geography. Yet, when one looks more closely at the economics of attending or even watching these matches, an uncomfortable question emerges: who can actually afford to be part of it?
Ticket pricing across venues presents a mixed picture. In Durban and Pretoria, entry-level tickets start at approximately R250, with premium seats reaching between R1,250 and R1,350. At FNB Stadium, however, the range extends far higher, with top-tier seats priced at R4,000. While this suggests some level of accessibility, it does not fully reflect how people experience live sport.
Rugby is rarely consumed in isolation. It is a social and often familial experience, where attendance typically involves multiple people. A parent taking children to their first match, extended family attending together, or groups of friends sharing the occasion. In this context, the relevant economic decision is not the price of a single ticket, but the cumulative cost borne by one individual or household. A ticket priced at R500 quickly becomes a R2,000 to R2,500 outing when multiplied across four or five attendees, before factoring in transport, parking, and food.
The same dynamic applies to those watching from home. In many cases, access to live broadcasts requires a premium subscription to DStv, exceeding R1,000 per month. While this reflects a standard commercial model, it nonetheless limits access in a country where disposable income is constrained for many. The absence of consistent free-to-air coverage through platforms such as the SABC further reinforces this divide.
Taken together, these factors point to a broader shift. What should be a shared national experience increasingly resembles a premium product, accessible to those who can afford it, but out of reach for many who would otherwise be deeply invested in the team.
The Springboks are more than a high-performing team; they are a unifying symbol that has historically brought together a diverse and often divided nation. That symbolic value carries with it an implicit responsibility. When an institution becomes a national asset in this sense, the measure of its success cannot be purely financial. Participation, inclusion, and connection matter just as much.
This is not to dismiss the commercial realities of modern sport. Stadiums are expensive to operate, broadcast rights are highly competitive, and sustaining elite performance requires significant investment. From a financial perspective, premium pricing is both rational and necessary. It drives revenue and supports long-term sustainability.
However, a purely commercial lens risks overlooking the long-term implications of narrowing access. South Africa remains a country characterised by deep inequality, and pricing strategies that may be sustainable elsewhere can have very different effects locally. As access becomes more limited, the relationship between the team and its supporters begins to change. Fewer young fans experience the game live, and the sport gradually shifts from being a shared national experience to an aspirational one.
The risk is not immediate or easily measurable. Stadiums will continue to sell out, and revenues will continue to grow. The more subtle risk lies in a gradual erosion of connection. A quiet disengagement from those who feel excluded. For this reason, the question is not whether rugby should be commercially successful, because it should be. Rather, the question is how that success is balanced with the need to remain accessible and relevant to the broader population.
The most resilient institutions recognise that value is created not only through pricing, but through participation. In practical terms, this may involve ensuring that a meaningful portion of tickets remains genuinely affordable, that key matches are available on free-to-air platforms, and that opportunities exist for schools, communities, and younger fans to experience the game firsthand. These are not acts of charity, but strategic investments in the long-term sustainability of the sport.
Ultimately, the Springboks will continue to compete at the highest level, and the commercial structures around the game will evolve. However, the true measure of success should not be defined solely by revenue or viewership, but by the breadth of participation and the depth of connection across the country. National pride is most powerful when it is shared, and when it becomes something only a portion of society can access, it risks losing the very quality that makes it meaningful.
*Yusuf Bodiat is a chartered accountant, certified director, and author of The Bottom Line: A CFO’s Blueprint for South Africa’s Turnaround. He writes on economic credibility and long-term growth.