Out of left field: Rugby Australia walks away from PE deal

The deal suggested by Rugby Australia CEO Phil Waugh (left) and chair Hamish McLennan drew only lukewarm interest. (Image: Getty)

Trevor McKewen

Fri, 22 Sep 2023

Rugby Australia has walked away from a Silver Lake-style private equity deal similar to New Zealand Rugby’s – but not because it wanted to.In a development that underlines how much trouble the code is in across the Tasman – and one that shows how much more powerful NZ Rugby’s worth is commercially – Rugby Australia (RA) has officially abandoned a quest to try to raise between A$150 million (NZ$162.4) and A$200m for up to a 20% share of its commercial assets.RA chair Hamish McLennan told RA’s stakeholders that...

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