New Super Rugby CEO Jack Mesley is energised by the prospect of leading the competition into the future as he leaves all options on the table for growth.
Mesley stepped into the role in July tasked with overseeing the new government structure of the competition.
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In a wide-ranging chat with reporters, Mesley stressed there was no 'silver bullet' that was going to drive the growth of Super Rugby.
Rather, the CEO was focused on sustained growth and capitalising on the best opportunities for the competition.
“What we need to focus on is bedding down a strategy and making 100 good decisions and driving from year on year growth," he said.
“My observation is that everyone's looking for a silver bullet to magically appear that that changes the dynamic overnight. I don't think that exists.
“This is hard work, making good decisions, executing well, year on year on year and then through right cycles we will start to change the financial dynamic that will increase investment.
“…What we need to focus on is bedding down a strategy and making 100 good decisions and driving from year on year growth."
This includes looking at options overseas as Super Rugby deals with the loss of the Melbourne Rebels.
Mesley revealed he had started conversations with European and Japanese counterparts in a quest to maximise the current Rugby landscape, which could see the creation of a World Club Championship between the best sides in the world.
“We will be keeping a very open mind and an eagle eye open as to what else is changing in the global dynamic that offers Super Rugby opportunity," he explained.
“World Club Cups and Championship games have been discussed, opportunity for more engagement and interaction with League One and clearly we've had some clubs up there playing pre-season games in the past and we have some again coming up for League One.
“There's all sorts of different opportunities, pre and post-season that we want to capitalise on."
The 2025 Super Rugby draw saw the exclusion of Super Round, with Mesley confirming it could return in 2026 as part of a blockbuster ANZAC Weekend headlined by a Bledisloe Test.
“There’s a number of different ways that Super could play into an ANZAC weekend and I think anything that helps bring more focus to rugby is a good thing for the code and it's a good thing for Super Rugby," Mesley said on an ANZAC Bledisloe.
"We've got to work through some of the nuances of how that works, either playing the same weekend or playing in and around Test Rugby and Super. But there's no doubt that as a broader proposition, something that creates a lot more noise for rugby in that period is a good thing.
“…(Super Round) has been thrown up in discussion with a potential ANZAC Bledisloe and we’ll be doing to work to ascertain that and look at the opportunity.”
Ultimately three key pillars will drive any decision Mesley and Super Rugby make regarding the future of the competition.
“I think the thing for us is the lens through which we look at all of this which is whatever we do has to improve the quality of athlete and competition, will it generate more fan interest and it has to add commercially," he added.
“There's a lot of conjecture about, you know, possible bringing back teams that have been in before but those kind of lenses are what we're going to have to assess for the future to ascertain whether or not we would change from the current format.
