In recent years The Athletic has been disrupting the sports journalism industry with a bold approach; exclusive and high-quality content for the die hard sports fan, entirely behind a paywall. It has been a raging success, but for me there has always been one major issue. The Athletic doesn’t cover Rugby. Well for those who have been asking for “The Athletic for Rugby”, those calls have been answered. This week we welcomed the new premium Rugby subscription platform, The XV.
The XV is a new Rugby subscription platform providing premium rugby content. Like The Athletic, it sits behind a paywall (keep reading to learn how to get the first month for free and a further 20% off for readers of FRG).
So how is The XV different, and why should you pay for something that you can get for free online from one of the numerous Rugby news outlets?
While there is undoubtedly an abundance of Rugby content online, most of it is aggregated, shallow content for a broad audience. The XV is different. They produce select content with the diehard Rugby fan in mind. No one else produces the same depth on a daily basis. The content on The XV includes 30 to 40 pieces of high-quality content every month. This includes long-read features, opinion pieces, in-depth analysis and columns from award-winning journalists, leading coaches, data analysts and the biggest stars in the game. Current contributors include Buck Shelford, Ben Kimber, Justin Marshall, Owain Jones, Nolli Waterman, Jon Cardinelli, Ross Harries, Chris Ashton, Gregor Paul, Liam Messam and, host of the Fantasy Rugby Draft podcast and friend of the FRG blog, none other than Sam Roberts. In addition to this there are 3 Podcasts currently live, including The XV with Ben Kimber (which is worth the subscription fee alone), with video to come too.
With a growing stable of some of the most insightful voices in the game, The XV provides authoritative content that is several steps beyond other Rugby outlets. There is no advertising on the site, just premium and exclusive rugby content from some of the most insightful, intelligent and thought-provoking journalists the Rugby world has to offer. The aim of The XV is to change how rugby is covered and create a more sustainable model for the best rugby content online. The income from subscriptions to the The XV will be re-invested into growing the platform, as Fred Culazzo, Director of The XV explains on the site, “The more subscribers that join this initiative, the more we can invest back into meaningful journalism that matters, and the more stories we will deliver to you each month. We hope you can join us.”
The XV costs £3.99 a month (far less than a pint at Twickenham) or just £24.99 per annum (far far less than a ticket to a match at Twickenham!), and for a limited period of time readers of FRG can get the first month for free, and a further 20% off your first paid month for monthly subscribers and 20% of your first year for annual subscribers by entering the code FRGXV at check-out. You can cancel for nothing at the end of the month, so you can enjoy risk-free top-quality rugby journalism for a whole month before you make a call to continue your subscription.
Check out The XV here and don’t forget to enter the discount code FRGXV at check-out for 20% off.
