The Fijian Drua will need close to NZ$10 million per year to feature in the Super Rugby from next year.
This is after New Zealand Rugby awarded a conditional license to the Drua to feature in the Super Rugby from 2022.
Fiji Rugby Union CEO, John O’Connor says they are in advanced stages of discussions with private capital funders and remain confident that it will finalize funding from one of those parties in coming weeks.
O’Connor says the operations of the Fijian Drua will be conducted through a separate company, which will be majority owned by private investors, although it will work closely with the FRU in many areas.
World Rugby will be providing funding for the next three years of over FJ$4million to the Drua and Moana Pasifika teams.
The NZ Rugby Board’s decision to approve licences is a major step toward the two Pasifika teams joining NZR’s existing five Sky Super Rugby Aotearoa clubs and Rugby Australia’s (RA) five Super Rugby AU teams in a new tournament being planned for 2022 and is conditional on their final business plans and RA's support.
The team is expected to be based in Suva and host five games.
FRU Chairman Conway Begg says the addition of the Drua will create over 65 new jobs, injecting in excess of FJ$6million in salaries alone to the economy and with other spending, and taxes, the economic impact is expected to exceed $15 million annually.
He says although they still have some work to do in finalising their funding, they are well progressed in not only those discussions but more broadly with other commercial partners.
