NZR summit document reveals radical plan to scrap Super Rugby and NPC in favour of new national competition

New Zealand Rugby is considering scrapping Super Rugby Pacific and the Hilux NPC entirely, replacing both competitions with a single national competition of 8-10 teams, according to a leaked internal document reported by rugby journalist Paul Cully in The Post ahead of Thursday’s review summit in Wellington.

The document, titled “Men’s Elite Competition Possible Options” and shared with stakeholders attending the summit, sets out three distinct paths for the future of men’s elite rugby in New Zealand. The most dramatic of the three would merge the five existing Super Rugby Pacific franchises — the Blues, Chiefs, Crusaders, Hurricanes, and Highlanders — with the provincial unions, reducing New Zealand’s high-performance teams from 19 to 14. Player payment budgets under that model would range from NZ$10 million down to NZ$8 million per team, with NZR supplying licences to the provincial unions and possible private investment through a separate vehicle.

The two remaining options are considerably less disruptive. One would see Super Rugby Pacific expand by two teams, with provincial unions such as Tasman, Taranaki, Hawke’s Bay, or Bay of Plenty identified as potential candidates, though the document does not name specific additions. The third option would retain both existing competitions largely as they are, but restructure them around five single rugby entities in Auckland, Waikato, Wellington, Canterbury, and Otago.

The Post reports that the expansion option is being driven in part by a projected loss of NZ$66 million over the next four years, suggesting financial pressure is a significant factor behind the review.

Any move toward a standalone New Zealand competition would have major implications for Rugby Australia, which co-governs Super Rugby Pacific as a trans-Tasman tournament. The leaked document acknowledges that NZR would need Rugby Australia’s agreement across a range of changes before any restructure could proceed.

One option — referred to as Option A — would see the Super Rugby Pacific franchises form a centralised holding company, described as an “SRP HoldCo”, to manage cross-border commercial rights, logistics, and marketing, while both NZR and Rugby Australia retain control of broadcast arrangements.

If any of the proposed changes are adopted, the new structure would not take effect until the 2028 season, with the current February-to-June schedule remaining unchanged in the interim. The Wellington summit on Thursday is expected to be the first formal forum in which NZR and its stakeholders debate the options in detail.