In huge news this week, Touch New Zealand (TNZ) announced a landmark partnership with New Zealand Rugby (NZR) that represents one of the most significant developments seen in the history of Touch in Aotearoa.
The agreement sees Touch join the larger rugby ecosystem in NZ, formally recognised as rugby’s official non-contact summer form of the game, while also providing a platform for TNZ to work closely with NZR across participation, community engagement, events, marketing, commercial partnerships and digital growth.
New Zealand Rugby (NZR) and Touch New Zealand (TNZ) agreed to a landmark partnership this past week.
It’s a massive win for Touch NZ who benefits from formal recognition from NZ Rugby, legitimising Touch in the New Zealand sporting landscape.
But while some celebrate the win, others disagree with the move, saying Touch NZ have missed an opportunity to partner with New Zealand Rugby League instead.
And it’s a fair argument.
Benji Marshall won a Touch World Cup and made his NRL debut in the same year, representing the benefits and potential of a Touch-Rugby League partnership.
Touch Football’s origins can literally be traced back to rugby league in Sydney in the 1960s. In New Zealand, rugby league has had a 24% year-on-year surge in terms of participation; it has major appeal to females and youth in particular, whose participation has more than doubled over the last few years; it is growing rapidly in the schools space, with 60 schools at the most recent NZRL Schools tournament; and culturally the momentum of rugby league in Aotearoa is at an all-time high, largely thanks to the recent success of the New Zealand Warriors in the NRL and the promotion of the NRLW competition.
Rugby, on the other hand, is — let’s face it — crying out for an injection. Participation across the country is slow progress; Super Rugby crowds dwindle at an average of 12-14,000 spectators per game; the Provincial competition has even less at an average of roughly 2,000 spectators per match; there are negative attitudes towards rugby's injury and concussion risks; and the on-field product can often leave viewers confused, frustrated or even bored.
Noah Hotham was a New Zealand Youth Touch representative before being plucked for the Crusaders and All Blacks.
But this partnership agreement has never been about which sport is more popular, or resembles Touch more closely.
It’s about which organisation provides the better strategic fit. And for Touch NZ, right now, that’s New Zealand Rugby.
After a spectacular footy career, Nehe Milner-Skudder has made a triumphant return to his Touch roots in recent years.
New Zealand Rugby is a commercial and institutional juggernaut. New Zealand Rugby League simply doesn’t operate at the same scale in New Zealand. That’s not a criticism, it’s just reality.
The impact rugby has had on New Zealand has been around since the early 1900s. That’s over 100 years of building vastly larger infrastructure, deeper school integration, stronger nationwide provincial systems, wider commercial reach, larger sponsor ecosystems, and two of the most recognisable sporting brands globally in the All Blacks and Black Ferns — many of whom started by throwing a ball around on the Touch field. The commercial potential alone of an NZR alignment, particularly ahead of a home Touch World Cup in two years’ time, is too good of an opportunity for TNZ to ignore.
Conveniently, NZR is looking for solutions around growing participation, safer entry points, player retention and engagement, keeping families connected and involved year-round, and re-establishing meaningful connection at the grassroots — all of which Touch can help solve. The two-way partnership is mutually beneficial.
Tenika Willison is a perfect example of a cross-code oval-ball athlete, representing the Touch Blacks, Black Ferns Sevens, Black Ferns and Kiwi Ferns.
Now that’s not to say that there shouldn’t or can't be a NZRL-TNZ partnership in the future. The reasons why have already been outlined. In fact, Touch is in a unique position where it should continue to strengthen relationships with both codes where possible. It benefits greatly from both rugby union and rugby league, while both sports also benefit greatly from Touch. There’s no reason for either of the two professional codes to have ‘ownership’ of the amateur code.
Collaboration, not exclusivity, is the key to unlocking the potential of oval ball ecosystem.
3 comments
Rugby not going that well in NZ
League going from strength to strength.
Touch is faster /more skilful than above !
The NRL are helping touch across in Aus
It would have been common sense to align with the NZ league or even the Warriors would have been better
We will see how Rugby helps Touch !!!!
You couldnt make it up. Rugby Union still does its utmost to limit Rugby League and we still have schools not allowing League to be played or forcing pupils to play Union. Yet Touch, which is League without the tackle and was invented in League, is jumping in bed with Union so that Union can boost its player numbers. Please make it make sense.
Touch is non contact Rugby League and always has been. It is nothing like Rugby Union. Where are the lineouts, mauls, scrums, rucks etc? To pretend it is Rugby Union or has any resemblance is absurd. Touch, and Rugby League, is being used by the NZR is boost the ailing state of Rugby Union in NZ.