Springboks' future at the heart of latest CVC investment - reports

Private equity investment group CVC are moving closer to completing a deal to acquire a 14 per cent stake in the Six Nations, according to reports.

The news will once again raise fears surrounding the future of the global rugby calendar.

According to the Financial Times, CVC are set to finalise a £300m deal to acquire a roughly 14 per cent stake in Six Nations over the next few weeks.

CVC are also reported to be close to agreeing a £120m stake in the Pro14.

CVC's continued investment in rugby has raised fears surrounding their plans for the game.

The motives behind CVC's continued investement in rugby has been cause for increasing speculation, as reported by RugbyPass over the weekend.

One of the main concerns concentrates on South Africa's participation in Rugby Championship and Super Rugby.  CVC are reported to be in advanced talks about investing in South Africa Rugby, and recently denied reports that any deal would see South Africa leave the Rugby Championship to join an expanded Six Nations.

However, CVC have made no secret about their desire to reshape the current structure of the global club game, sparking rumours of a potential Club World Cup.

According to the Financial Times:

"The Luxembourg-based group, which has previously invested in Formula One, expects to finalise a £300m deal to acquire a roughly 14 per cent stake in Six Nations, one of the sport’s flagship tournaments, within weeks, according to people familiar with the matter.

"The deal, alongside a £120m stake in club competition Pro14 that is expected to be sealed by the end of the month, will take CVC’s investment in rugby to more than £600m since it first targeted the game two years ago. In 2018, it snapped up a 27 per cent holding in Premiership Rugby, the top tier of English club rugby union.

"The group is in talks with World Rugby, the global governing body which runs the Rugby World Cup, and national governing bodies in New Zealand and South Africa, two of the dominant forces in rugby, according to several people familiar with them."

On the subject of South Africa's future, the report claims:

"Those close to the talks denied recent reports that a deal between CVC and South Africa would be a precursor of the current world champions leaving the Rugby Championship to play in the Six Nations instead," the report continues.

"However, they added that there were active discussions about reshaping club competitions between the hemispheres. This includes adding at least one more South African club side to the Pro14."

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