When we look at the whole of 2023 we can say that there is no more significant sporting event than the Rugby World Cup, which is held in France. We are aware that this is a qualifying year for participation in the 2024 Paris Olympics, but with all due respect, the gathering of the best rugby teams on the planet is still the event of the year. Every rugby competition, including the 6 Nations Cup, is viewed through the prism of the World Cup, where everyone is looking at where the teams are and where they will be in September when the competition starts. On websites, social networks, forums and blogs, the current forms of the teams are analyzed and discussed, as well as who are the favorites. Of course, it is too early to draw conclusions about who will be in what form in the tournament, but that does not stop analysts, experts, fans and rugby fans from discussing and exchanging opinions.
This is exactly what makes a sport popular. You can appear on television, you can shake hands with politicians, you can advertise non-stop on social networks, but if you are not talked about, if your fans are not discussing you, you are simply not popular. Трибине су најбољи показатељ популарности, уколико нисте популарни нико неће доћи да вас гледа, јер што би, ако није занимљиво. If we look at the Rugby World Cup, we have the 20 best teams in the world. The best rugby players in the world perform at the tournament. This year will be perhaps the most uncertain competition in history, where more than 8 teams are capable of lifting the cup in the end. It is played at fantastic sports facilities, broadcasts are carried out at a high level, you have fantastic photographers, journalists, commentators, simply sending a fantastic picture and message from the tournament.
Is such a competition interesting and popular? You bet! This year the World Cup is being held in France, where rugby is the national sport. The interest is huge, it is expected that the stands will be full at all the matches that will be played. The impact will be immeasurable throughout the world, especially in Europe, even in countries where rugby is not popular. Which is the goal that the World Rugby Federation wants to achieve, which is for rugby to grow and develop.
How does the World Cup affect rugby in Serbia?
Like it or not, the impact is huge. Quite simply, rugby gets huge visibility in the media, matches are broadcast live on TV channels, sports portals download news and write about rugby. The rugby community in Serbia really follows the World Cup, even more so by people who used to play rugby and who would like to watch some matches. It is also followed by spectators who have never had contact points with rugby, they simply like the sport. Rugby then becomes globally popular and in countries where it is not so popular.
We are of the opinion that such a situation must be used in the right way. When we say take advantage, we mean first of all that as many young people as possible start training rugby, or that a club be formed in an area where there was no rugby, or that rugby be reactivated in areas where it used to function. We also remind you that after and during the World Cup in Japan, the Rugby Union of Serbia implemented development projects of school presentations with record results. Think it has nothing to do with the World Cup? You are mistaken. It does matter, everyone likes to be a part of something popular and interesting. If children and parents watched a match, or read something about rugby or heard from acquaintances and friends. All the clubs were full of children, which was reflected later on in the competition. It is also interesting that a large number of players return to rugby during and after the World Cup.
What can clubs do during the World Cup to make rugby more popular?
A lot can be done. You should take advantage of every opportunity, and this kind of opportunity comes every four years. Clubs have several options to make the most of the hype surrounding the World Cup and the promotional tailwind. And we should definitely invest in the promotion of rugby in schools. It is also necessary to stab the momentum when doing so. The best variant to start with is the endgame itself and the period after the end of the final game.
It is particularly interesting that the absolute trend has become all over the world to implement promotional activities through the idea of a Mini World Cup. The Mini World Cup is a school tournament or a tournament between departments in a school, where each team represents one selection of participants in the real World Cup. And in the past 12 years, that idea has been spinning non-stop as the ultimate inventive project that is retold with delight. As far as we’re concerned, it’s the height of inventive superficiality, on a par with getting a dog to name Rex. If rugby really is a sport played by the intellectual elite, it has to do better than this.
Clubs should definitely increase their activities on social networks and websites. What’s more, we recommend paying for promotional ads so that they are more visible in the territory where they operate. And here you should pay special attention to the target groups of certain social networks. For example, Facebook currently has an older population, so the target group should be parents. There is a slightly younger population on Instagram, where the target group should be younger players. There is also Tik Tok, which is perhaps the most popular social network at the moment. You should pay special attention to what kind of message you want to send, the success of your action depends on it.
Organize get-togethers and watching matches. At the moment when the World Cup is being played, our season is also going on. You can arrange that after the end of the game and the tournament, with good food, drinks and company, the games are followed. When you have a good atmosphere in the club, everyone will want to be part of such a collective. And rugby is, above all, a sport that is very much accompanied by socialization and socializing.
Plan activities in advance. Keep everything organized. Because if you have organized everything well, even when unforeseen things happen, you will easily solve them. If you do not organize anything in time, you very easily stumble into improvisation, which leads to frustration if you do not achieve the desired effect. Then you have a situation where a good atmosphere and fun is replaced by torture and bullying.
Try to organize some internal competition related to predicting the results. Or you can create an internal fantasy league on the official website of the World Cup. You have a lot of opportunities to design a wide variety of activities that aim to create the best possible atmosphere, that is, to attract people and get involved in rugby.
What can individuals do to promote rugby during the World Cup?
If you think that you cannot change much as an individual, you are seriously mistaken. You can do a lot. You can also have an immeasurable contribution on social networks, where you can summarize your impressions from matches, where you can discuss interesting events, share announcements and articles that are interesting to you. If you are interesting to people, they will definitely follow what you write or share. Maybe a parent might find a newspaper article you shared interesting and enroll their child in rugby. Maybe a relative watches highlights from a match and wants to coach rugby too. Do not doubt the power of the individual, sometimes personal initiative can bring positive things.
If you want rugby to be popular, we strongly advise you to watch live matches and tournaments. This is not a platitude that it would be good for rugby in general. We think there is a lot to see on our grounds. Especially in the younger categories, where very talented rugby players grow up. It is an ideal opportunity to meet the future young hopes of rugby, to exchange experiences and ideas with them, to discuss the World Cup and the matches. You will be pleasantly surprised when you see how much young people follow world rugby and how much they know about rugby in general.
Hang out, watch matches together, have a good time. There is no better advertisement than when you tell someone how much fun you had at the rugby or how much you enjoyed watching the game with your friends. Rugby is as popular as matches are talked about, tactics and good moves are analysed, forms of teams and players are analyzed.
This World Cup is an ideal opportunity for our people to watch live matches in larger numbers. A large number of our people will also go to the matches. We hereby appeal to them to share all their experiences with others. Post videos and photos on social networks, write and talk about how you felt. We see no reason why the good atmosphere should not be shared with others.
How will the editorial staff of the Rugby.rs portal follow the World Cup and give its contribution?
Although we primarily write and follow events in domestic rugby, we will not be able to avoid seeing off the World Cup. It is certain that we will follow the events by groups in brief, while we will write a little more extensively when the tournament reaches the ¼ final matches. We will try to cover as much as possible to make our readers more knowledgeable about all aspects of the competition.
We will also pay special attention to domestic activities around the World Cup because we want to contribute to making rugby as popular as possible in our country. We are planning to make a mini-series during the World Cup where we would present our clubs. Let’s try to find a model to direct part of the media attention from the World Cup to domestic rugby.
