THE RUGBY LEAGUE DIVIDEND ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL IMPACT OF RUGBY LEAGUE July 2019 Dr Nicolas Scelles Manchester Metropolitan University T: 0161 247 3949 E: [email protected] CONTENTS AUTHORS AND OTHER CONTRIBUTORS TO THE RESEARCH 4 HEADLINES 5 FOREWORD 6 INTRODUCTION 10 METHODOLOGY 12 RESULTS 16 ECONOMIC IMPACT 18 ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE 24 SOCIAL IMPACT 26 SOCIAL RETURN ON INVESTMENT (SROI) 28 SOCIAL CAPITAL 30 CONCLUSION 41 REFERENCES 42 APPENDICES 44 2 3 AUTHORS AND OTHER CONTRIBUTORS TO THE The annual economic impact of the English clubs RESEARCH and central events is estimated at more than £141 MILLION AUTHORS Community clubs have economic importance for their territory, maintaining economic relationships with local companies and providing employment and remuneration. The social impact of the sport of Rugby League on players and volunteers is estimated at more than DR NICOLAS SCELLES PROF JONATHAN GRIX PROF MARC JONES DR THOMAS HOSTLER (Principal Investigator) £185 MILLION Other contributors to the research Every £ spent by Rugby League community clubs in GABRIELLE SALOMON sport generates a social return of £4.08. (all PhD candidates at MMU) LUCI SMITH DANIEL GALLANT £1 = £4.08 The social capital of the sport of Rugby League is demonstrated by the positive elements highlighted by volunteers as well as members of the communities who do not identify as fans of Rugby League in terms of social cohesiveness, identity, aspiration and role models. 4 5 HEADLINES FOREWORD Sport has a very special place in the social National sporting organisations have charitable foundations play at the heart tournament played in iconic venues in fabric of our nation. It has the power to been challenged to better evidence and of their communities in providing vital the North and across the country. engage us as individuals and groups, demonstrate the wider social impacts that social hubs and outreach activities bringing us together and enriching sport has on mental and physical health, which extend far beyond the provision I will continue to play my part in our communities through playing, community cohesion and addressing of regular sporting opportunities for celebrating Rugby League, its clubs, volunteering, watching and supporting. inequalities. children, young people, women and foundations and communities; and I The UK excels at sport. Our teams and men; and the considerable value of wish all three England teams every athletes are outstanding and the UK is I am delighted that, on behalf of the sport, those services and activities. success in their preparations for and will remain one of the best places in the Rugby Football League has embarked RLWC2021. the world to host major sporting events. on a series of independent research The return on investment in Rugby Sport offers the nation’s favourite form of and insight activities, to demonstrate League is a significant social return ANDY BURNHAM, MAYOR OF GREATER MANCHESTER volunteering. It shapes all our communities in particular the social impact of Rugby which can be measured and which AND RFL PRESIDENT 2018-2019 and touches our daily lives. League. This ‘Rugby League Dividend’ makes a positive difference to people’s It contributes to our wellbeing, our senses report is the first in the series. lives. I am particularly pleased to see of place, of belonging and of happiness. the contribution that Rugby League In committing to this, the Rugby Football makes to social mobility brought to the Government and Sport England have League is bringing to a far wider audience fore in this report. worked in partnership with sport and the story of how this authentic sport physical activity organisations to take a delivers a huge range of social and The nation is looking forward to the bold approach to harnessing the potential economic benefits – the ‘Rugby League Rugby League World Cup in 2021 and of sport for social good. The funding for dividend’ - in its core communities in the the enormous opportunity to bring sport is no longer merely about how many North and beyond. rugby league and its story to the widest people take part, but rather how sport can possible audience with the Women’s, have a meaningful and measurable impact This report highlights the central and Men’s and Wheelchair RL World Cups on improving people’s lives. varied role that Rugby League clubs and integrated into one inclusive, exciting 6 7 FOREWORD Manchester Metropolitan University is I am sure that the report will enhance delighted to present this report describing Manchester Metropolitan University’s the economic and social impact of Rugby reputation as a leader in Sport Policy League. The report was produced for the research and we are pleased to continue Rugby Football League by academics in our association with the sport following our Sport Policy Unit, which is part of the the announcement of Manchester world-leading Future Economies Research Metropolitan University as the Official Centre within our Faculty of Business University Partner of the Rugby League and Law. It is an important report and World Cup 2021. This significant new evidences the significant contribution partnership will enable us to conduct that the sport of Rugby League makes to research into the impact of the World Cup, communities and the nation beyond sport. that we hope will inform the organization As the report describes, in addition to of major international sporting events its economic impact, Rugby League more generally, and it will provide a range successfully capitalises on its ability to of exciting opportunities for students from reach core disadvantaged communities, across the University. contributing positively to social cohesiveness, the identity of the town/ PROFESSOR RICHARD GREENE, BSC, city, aspiration and provides positive role PHD, MB, BS, MBA, FHEA, FAS PROFESSOR OF ANATOMY models. The sport provides an important PRO-VICE-CHANCELLOR FOR RESEARCH AND KNOWLEDGE support to social mobility and has a EXCHANGE reach, visibility and value beyond its core MANCHESTER METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY followers. 8 9 The present report tackles the economic and & Gouguet, 2010). Interestingly, Barget In this research, we complemented this social impact and importance of the sport of and Gouguet (2010) note that such an approach by adding an extra qualitative Rugby League (professional and grassroots) economic impact assessment alone research dimension to drill down into in England. It responds to a request from the is not enough to justify expenditure the 4 case studies provided by RFL to Rugby Football League to undertake a robust on such events, but rather there is a analyse the impact of the sport of Rugby research project to investigate and highlight need for a cost-benefit analysis in order League on social capital generation and the significant contribution that Rugby League to measure the net social utility for community spirit. Profs Grix and Jones makes to communities and the nation beyond the population. In other words, costs took responsibility for this part of the sport, e.g. economic impact, physical and and benefits are not only monetary study, supported by Dr Hostler, based mental health and increasing aspiration. Such (economic) but also non-monetary on their previous publications on both research is timely in a context where the (social). While Barget and Gouguet ‘social capital’ (Grix, 2001), ‘social capital Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee (2010) conducted an economic impact and sport’ (Grix, 2016) and the ‘feelgood has recently produced a report on the social and social utility assessment of the factor’ (Jones et al., 2012). The research impact of sport (DCMSC, 2019). The output Rugby World Cup 2007 in the different assistants Gabrielle Salomon, Luci expected by the Rugby Football League is split French territories (regions) that hosted Smith and Daniel Gallant – all doctoral in 5 outcomes: games, their application is relevant candidates at MMU - conducted the for the research brief put out by the focus groups and interviews required for • To quantify the economic impact of the Rugby Football League. Indeed, a the qualitative section of this report. sport. main objective is to produce an overall • To quantify the economic importance of the economic and social impact report for The report is structured as follows. sport. the sport of Rugby League in England. First, the methodology is described. • To quantify the social impact of the sport. CDES (Centre for Sport Law and Second, the results are provided for • To evidence that every £ spent on the sport Economics), based in Limoges (France), the economic impact and importance generates a social return of £x. has already adapted and applied the as well as the social impact, return • To grasp the meaning of a club to its methodology described above to assess on investment and capital. Last, a community and the impact it has on social the economic and social impact of the conclusion sums up the findings. cohesion in that community (social capital). French professional football club AC Ajaccio (CDES, 2017). Dr Nicolas Scelles, Economic impact assessment is a well- a sports economist in the MMU research researched area in sports economics, team, has already worked with the generally used in assessing the pros and author of the CDES project (see Scelles cons of hosting sports-mega events (Barget & Gouguet, 2015). INTRODUCTION 10 11 METHODOLOGY This research relies on both Wigan St Judes for the quantitative part). (one in each research site; n=4) with expenditure by and geographical quantitative and qualitative volunteers at the Rugby League origin of home and away fans as approaches. The quantitative part aims Given the timescales and the time club. To get a broader perspective of well as away teams. to assess the economic and social needed to organise the data and the impact of the Rugby League we impact of the sport of Rugby League, then to calculate the economic and interviewed members of the community Based on the elements above, the while the qualitative part focuses on social impact of the sport of Rugby in each location who did not identify key aspect in the calculation of the social capital.