Rugby trapped between Israel Folau’s belief and sponsor rage

Rugby Australia admits ‘there was a lot riding’ on today’s meeting with Israel Folau.

Israel Folau will meet Rugby Australia officials today. Picture: Darren Leigh Roberts

A Rugby Australia official admitted “there was a lot riding” on today’s meeting with Israel Folau as RA boss Raelene Castle attempts to find a way to somehow retain the Wallabies fullback while at the same time losing three major sponsors alienated by his conservative comments on gays.

Folau, who comes off contract at the end of the year and is being heavily courted by rugby league clubs, caused a storm last week when he responded to a question on Instagram by saying that God’s plan for homosexuals was Hell unless they repented.

Three of rugby’s most influential sponsors, Qantas, Asics and Land Rover, have contacted RA to express their outrage that Folau’s comments are flagrantly at odds with their company policies of inclusiveness.

All have indicated they will be watching with great interest developments from today’s meeting when Folau and his manager Isaac Moses will meet with Castle and Waratahs CEO Andrew Hore. The implicit threat is that they could pull their support if the game cannot convince Folau not to spread his views on social media. Any more anti-gay comments and they could walk.

Qantas has become virtually synonymous with the Wallabies and while RA refused to disclose how much the sponsorship is worth, they acknowledged it ran into the “multi-millions”. Land Rover signed on as a major RA sponsor through to 2020, but it is understood that Folau was not offered a vehicle as part of the national deal. They also sponsor the Brumbies.

Yet indications are that Folau will not be silenced. A devout Christian, he posted a tweet late on Sunday citing the New Testament reading of Matthew 5:11-13 which states “blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men revile you and persecute you and say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.”

RA was making no comment on the matter until after today’s crisis meeting at RA headquarters.

“There is a meeting tomorrow between Israel, Raelene Castle and Andrew Hore, who obviously is the CEO of NSWRU,” RA chairman Cameron Clyne said following yesterday’s annual general meeting.

“It would not be appropriate to make any speculation or commentary ahead of that meeting.”

Yet he acknowledged that RA had itself espoused inclusiveness. “We’ve got an inclusion policy which is very important. Rugby’s great asset is that it’s a game for all and that’s why we’ve always been very proud of our inclusion policy. One of the reasons sponsors are attracted to us is hopefully they see that it’s a game for all and it aligns with them. There will be a conversation tomorrow and we’ll let it play out from then.”

RA is now walking a tightrope. If Folau insists that Rugby Australia, his employers, have no right to rein in his rights to freedom of speech and religion and that what he does is between him and his God, then Castle could be left with two options, both of which are utterly unappetising.

If she cracks down hard on the Waratahs and Wallabies fullback and imposes sanctions under RA’s inclusion policy, it risks more than merely the likelihood that he will cut short his contract negotiations and return to rugby league in 2019, the year of the Rugby World Cup in Japan. Folau has become almost an unofficial spokesman for the deeply religious Polynesian community. If it was to turn its back on rugby, and took a significant percentage of the Polynesian community with him, it would be almost a death knell for the game.

Doing nothing, however, is scarcely an option either. RA yesterday announced a relatively grim financial situation. Although it recorded a surplus of $17.8 million in 2017, $21.6m of this was provided by government funding for the development of RA’s new administrative headquarters in Sydney’s Moore Park. Without this one-off support, operationally RA recorded a deficit of $3.8m.

Although Clyne forecast an improved financial position over the next two years, with the national body able to invest $12m into the game — axing the Western Force last year will provide $6m extra annually, although one-off costs restricted this year’s return to the game to just $3m — it is clear RA is in no position to cope with the threatened loss of major backers.

The optimum solution today would be for Castle to acknowledge Folau’s right to express his religious beliefs but ask him not to disperse his views on social media. Folau has never been a confrontational player. Indeed, he is the pin-up player for the code and its highest-paid player for a reason. But if he feels compelled to spread the “word of God”, then he will drive RA into a position where it has little alternative.

Meanwhile, the RA has announced two new directors to replace Geoff Stooke, who resigned over the Force’s axing, and Liz Broderick, with former Gordon president Hayden Rorke and Victorian John Wilson coming onto the board. John Eales will stand down as a director later this year when his term expires and will be replaced by another former Wallabies great, Phil Waugh.