Power and Performance: Fiji Rugby's Transition from Amateurism to Professionalism

Rika, Nacanieli J. and Finau, Glen and Samuwai, Jale and Kuma, Clayton (2016) Power and Performance: Fiji Rugby's Transition from Amateurism to Professionalism. Accounting History, 21 (1). pp. 75-97. ISSN 1032-3732

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Abstract

This paper contributes to the literature on accounting and sport by adopting a long-term perspective to show how accounting and rugby union have been used as tools of control in a country where rugby is an integral part of national culture and identity. It analyses the Fiji Rugby Union’s (FRU) internal documents from the 1960s and 1970s when Fiji was a British crown colony and rugby was an amateur sport. Then it examines documents from the professional era of rugby to compare the role of accounting in amateur and professional sport. During the amateur period, the FRU practiced rudimentary accounting since it relied on internally-generated funds, supported by philanthropic donations and therefore had no public accountability. Furthermore, management emphasised the core values of amateur rugby and actively strove to limit the importance of money. However in the professional period, donors like the International Rugby Board (IRB) and the Fiji government require more sophisticated financial reporting and auditing from the FRU to monitor the use of their grants and evaluate the impact of their investments. The FRU has encountered conflict with the IRB and government due to repeated financial losses and alleged mismanagement. This paper reveals the origins of those losses in the amateur period where they were caused by diseconomies of scale, inequitable arrangements for international matches and unsustainable funding models. Rather than helping the FRU to address these underlying problems, powerful stakeholders continue using financial resources and governance structures to control and exploit Fiji rugby from a distance.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HF Commerce > HF5601 Accounting
Divisions:	Faculty of Business and Economics (FBE) > School of Accounting and Finance
Depositing User:	Nacanieli Rika
Date Deposited:	18 Nov 2015 23:14
Last Modified:	16 Feb 2024 02:31
URI:	https://repository.usp.ac.fj/id/eprint/8596

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