Melbourne’s Carter Gordon races away to score against the Brumbies this year.Credit:Getty Images
Concerns over whether the Rebels could survive past 2025 began to circulate afterThe Australian Financial Reviewrevealed that the team owe millions of dollars to the Australian Taxation Office and around $1 million in fees for use of the AAMI Park stadium.
Adding to worries was news that a key club sponsor,BRC Capital,was facing financial issues.The Australian Financial Reviewreported that BRC Capital,whose chairman Paul Docherty also chairs the Rebels,was facing questions about its solvency after four subsidiaries were wound up in the past month.
But club boss Stephenson was adamant on Wednesday that the Rebels’ financial problems were solvable,and that the issues were not unique to the club,but a broader problem across Super Rugby’s five Australian teams.
“I’m disappointed that the Rebels,we feel like that we’re the ones out the front[as] scapegoats,and[have been hanged] on the cross,” Stephenson told this masthead.
“All of[the Super Rugby club’s] business models are all under severe pressure,and where that has stemmed from is,like everyone,we had COVID-reduced funding back in March 2020.”
The financial strain caused by the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a $31 million cost cut from the Rugby Australia business. And after the Western Force returned to Super Rugby,the other four clubs had grants cut from $5.5 million a year to $3.9 million.
“Clubs are being asked to do a hell of a lot more with less,” he said.