It is now official Super Rugby is to cut three teams. In doing so it will revert to being the Super 15, albeit possibly not with that former name returning. Unlike the Super 15 the competitors are to come from five rather than three countries. So who are the Winners and Losers of Super Rugby Downsizing?

Winners

Of the five countries involved in Super Rugby three are not the be impacted whatsoever. They are Argentina, Japan and New Zealand.

Argentina
The 2018 Super Rugby season will continue to have Los Jaguares. The Argentine side will again be the one and only team from the country in the competition. The team will also continue to be based in Buenos Aires and will play home matches in the capital.

Japan
Similar to Los Jaguares the Sunwolves have their place in the competition assured. Japan’s gain, though, is arguably the biggest of all unions involved. The Sunwolves will no longer play in the South African conference but in the Australian. In doing so the Sunwolves are to travel less and potentially play all home matches in Tokyo rather than mixing between there and Singapore.

New Zealand
The giants of Super Rugby will continue to have five teams. The existing franchises of the Blues, Chiefs, Crusaders, Highlanders and Hurricanes are also to be retained as the teams. New Zealand is to also gain significantly from cuts being made elsewhere. The feeling in the country is that the conference model is unfairly balanced against New Zealand teams. With the model decreasing from four to three conferences New Zealand comes out as big winners.

Losers

Australia
Brisbane and Sydney are safe. Neither the Queensland Reds nor the New South Wales Waratahs are in any danger whatsoever or being cut from Super Rugby. This leaves the other three in a precarious situation. The Canberra-based Brumbies have been in Super Rugby since it was the Super 12 in 1996. The team has been champion and continues to be one of the best Australian sides. Canberra is, however, easily the smallest of the three cities. Melbourne and Perth are much larger though both have overloaded sporting markets. As such none of them are currently assured of their places in 2018 and one will be cut.

South Africa
The biggest loser is not Australia but South Africa. Not only will Africa be downsized from two to one conference but the country is to go from having six to four teams. The situation is less complicated than that of Australia. In 1995 there were four teams. Rebranding over the years has seen changes but their continue to play out of Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg and Pretoria. Moreover these sides, the Stormers, Sharks, Lions and Bulls, have done better than those added since – the Cheetahs and Southern Kings. Cutting teams from Bloemfontein and Port Elizabeth is not necessarily the answer though. In provincial terms the Kings cover a larger population than do the Stormers and Bulls.

New Territories
Expanding to the Pacific Islands will have to wait. The dream will continue to live on but will it ever be turned into reality? There are arguments for and against. Fiji has hosted Super Rugby matches and done very well for itself. It could certainly be a team with the Fiji Warriors mirroring that of Los Jaguares. Speculation over a side from California or Vancouver will also have to wait.

It is not all negative news though as despite cutting three teams the door remains open for the inclusion  of additional teams from Argentina or South America. A second Argentine team has been marked as entering either in 2019 or 2020. A composite South American side has also been discussed to enter ahead of Rugby World Cup 2023.

2018 Super Rugby Structure

For the 2018 season the Super Rugby conferences are to all contain five teams. At present the only conference confirmed is that of New Zealand. Competitors in the remaining two are yet to all be made official. At the present point in time what is official is that the Sunwolves will play in the Australian conference and Los Jaguares in the South African. The remaining competitors will be confirmed later this year.

Australian Conference	New Zealand Conference	South African Conference
Sunwolves	Blues	Jaguares
Australian team 1	Chiefs	South African team 1
Australian team 2	Crusaders	South African team 2
Australian team 3	Highlanders	South African team 3
Australian team 4	Hurricanes	South African team 4