Super Rugby’s future will be decided within the month, but NZ Rugby and Rugby Australia remain at loggerheads.
Rugby Australia chief executive Andy Marinos isn't happy with the revenue split, insisting it must be an equal partnership to ensure the competition continues.
Marinos refuses to leave Australian rugby's future to chance and is determined to ensure it gets what he feels it deserves, as negotiations over Super Rugby's future drag on.
"We’re progressing," Marinos told Newshub. "I'll be honest with you, it’s been really slow, but we are making progress."
The sticking point has been the share of broadcast revenue, with NZR’s deal worth roughly $70 million more per year than Rugby Australia's.
Under the previous SANZAAR agreement, revenue was split evenly and Marinos is adamant that needs to continue, but time is not on their side.
"We have to," replied Marinos, when asked if he's confident about getting a deal done. "It’s really important for the growth of the game in our region.
"I wouldn't want to be having these conversations next month."
Rugby Australia and NZR have met several times in the last two months to try to move closer to an agreement.
The latest offer from NZR was only received a fortnight ago and Newshub understands it was not a 50-50 revenue split.
So why should Marinos and Rugby Australia expect the same share of revenue, given the disparity in value of their broadcast deal with their Kiwi counterparts?
"It's not about a bigger slice of the revenue, it's about operating in an equal partnership," Marinos explained. "We're both bringing the same amount of value to the table."
NZR chief executive Mark Robinson has declined an interview, but head of professional rugby Chris Lendrum addressed the situation at Sunday's Super Rugby draw announcement, saying the competition was "critical for our high performance pathways, critical for our fans and the strength of rugby in the region".
"We are talking about a long-term partnership and when you're thinking many years ahead with the complexities of the rugby calendar, it takes a bit of time to work through all the details," said Lendrum.
"We know we've only really got one chance to nail this, we were excited by what we saw out of the competition last year and this year is massively exciting."
Rugby Australia's threat of walking away in favour of a domestic competition remains a possibility, but Marinos maintains that committing to Super Rugby is the best thing for the game, and the organisation sees its value and importance to the game in this region of the world.
"It's critically important," he added. "It underpins your high performance pathways."
Those are pathways both NZ Rugby and Rugby Australia hope lead to a long-term Super Rugby deal.
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