Newlands Rugby Stadium (Gallo)
- A report in local Sunday newspaper Rapport suggests that Western Province clubs are attempting to keep “black rugby” out of the hands of what they describe as “white capital”.
- A WhatsApp message which circulated stated “there are a handful of people trying to hijack black rugby and hand over control to white capital.”
- WP Rugby bosses are battling to repay to repay a R58 million debt to investment holding company Remgro.
Members of clubs in the Western Province are reportedly trying to keep “black rugby” out of the hands of what they describe as “white capital”.
Register your interest for the British & Irish Lions tickets in South Africa 2021
The Western Province Rugby Football Union’s (WPRFU) board is set to vote this week on the possibility of reversing asset management company Investec’s planned redevelopment of Newlands stadium and accept a loan from a company called Any Side Investments (Pty) Ltd instead.
Afrikaans newspaper Rapport indicated on Sunday that three clubs confirmed they had received the following message via WhatsApp: “There are a handful of people trying to hijack black rugby and hand over control to white capital.”
The message adds that WP president Zelt Marais and his executive committee “are fighting to retain control of black rugby in the province” and the “masses feel that the president and his executive committee are constantly fighting against his deputy and vice-president as well as the “most senior” for control of the union.
READ | WP Rugby/Aerios conflict: SARU drawn into court action
According to the Afrikaans weekly’s information, “most senior” refers to Moneeb Levy, Spencer King and Pieter Jooste.
The agreement between Investec and the WPRFU, which should have been signed at the beginning of June, stipulates that Investec pays the union R110 million for the right to redevelop Newlands. The union would be entitled to a 5% share in any potential profit from the development.
The WPRFU has already been paid R50 million by Investec, which would have to be paid back if the deal fell through. The remaining payment was set to be used by the union to repay its R58 million debt to investment holding company Remgro.
These two debts will reportedly be settled by Any Side Investments, with the WPRFU registering a new mortgage bond on Newlands to secure the loan.
WP Rugby is expected to move from Newlands to Cape Town Stadium at the end of the 2020 season.
– Compiled by Sport24 staff
