Privately owned franchises are increasingly becoming a reality for South African rugby. One insider believes rugby in this country has reached a tipping point and that an injection of capital and expertise will only do the game good."I think this is inevitable," said the well-connected insider whose views have been canvassed on the topic by SA Rugby heavyweights."I am really glad they are talking about it," said the source who has vast knowledge of the machinations of South African rugby.Equity partner and deputy president of the Golden Lions, Altmann Allers, believes comprehensive change in South African rugby has become non-negotiable."The cost of production far exceeds what we are getting in. We cannot be half pregnant about this. Only comprehensive change will put rugby on a better path."We cannot afford not to do it."The model has to change otherwise it will not attract more investment. The question potential investors will ask is 'will I get a return on investment?'" said Allers.He believes SA Rugby cannot be too prescriptive to investors.The insider cautioned that though a cash injection would address many ills of the game, privatisation must be carefully regulated."You have to ensure, however, that there are some minimum requirements in place before you hand over ownership."Their biggest challenge will be to avoid a situation similar to what we have in England and France. The clubs there are in private hands and it has become an us and them scenario."The governing bodies and the clubs are still fighting to find middle ground. One sticking point there is that clubs there decide when they are going to release players for national duty."There also is little control over who they can contract. Before long you find yourself in the situation like in France where French players are being squeezed out of their top league."England to a degree have overcome that by placing certain limits on the number of overseas players that can play in their leagues."He stressed that the pitfalls could be overcome.SA Rugby president-elect Mark Alexander told the Sunday Times last week that increasing private equity among the country's franchises would be one of his priorities when he is officially elected.By raising more capital for the domestic game SA Rugby can stem the tide of players who opt to play abroad."The obvious benefit would be that we have a much better chance of retaining our players and that they are less inclined to play abroad," said the insider."SA Rugby can then use their money in a different way for development and for academies. You have to sort out your academies. I've heard 50 Currie Cup players have just been contracted to play abroad next year. You have to stop that."You could stipulate that every franchise has to have an academy and that you have to budget a certain amount for that."Transformation is definitely one of the things you have to address. That is one of South Africa's realities. Anyone who doesn't respect or accept that has no place in rugby. That has to be one of the first requirements that you put down."You can also legislate how many home-grown players you want in certain positions. That is one of the simplest and easiest things to regulate," the insider said."I think despite those built-in safeguards investors will still find it an attractive proposition. I would like to see it like a Spur franchise where you will have to meet certain criteria. You can't just come in and increase or decrease the size of the burger patty."There are certain parameters within which you have to operate. If you are happy with that then you can buy in but the control of the sport will still have to rest with the governing body."You can't just sign away your rights and say do as you please and we will worry about the regulations later."Meanwhile, Cheetah's chief executive Harold Verster said: "You would have to have a proper agreement in which SA Rugby does not waive all their rights. That can be dangerous. If there are proper agreements between SA Rugby and the private entities then it can work for rugby."Verster, the longest serving executive in the domestic game, is also a long-time proponent of greater private-sector involvement in the game."We have gone down that road long ago," said Verster. "SuperSport owns 24.5% of our company and we see it as a huge positive. In fact, we'd encourage SuperSport to take more."Verster believes functions have to be clearly defined. "With us, if there is a rugby matter it is dealt with by the rugby people on the board."If it is about money the equity partner has a bigger say. We haven't had to vote on it because we work together," Verster said."I think the unions will agree with it as long as they get to decide over rugby matters and the equity partners as long as they can make decisions about the money."He believes provincial unions are as receptive as they've ever been to increased private investment."Most unions already have a commercial arm. As long as the unions feel they still have control they will vote for it. If they lose their majority they'll get worried."It will require lots of negotiation, but I think the future is moving in that direction. The competitions need attention as well as the structure of SA Rugby."The insider said: "I've always been nervous about this because of what's happened abroad."However, they find themselves in that position because they didn't address potential concerns or didn't plan properly. That doesn't mean the whole thing has to be looked at as being a negative."The framework in which you allow this will have to be well thought through," said the insider.sports@timesmedia.co.za..