Lack of facilities bleeds rugby coffers
Calistus Kolantsho | Friday June 5, 2026 10:04
The association was instructed to reapply for a different plot and provide proof of financing. Lack of a facility is bleeding the Union, particularly when it comes to national team events.
BRU secretary-general, Damelin Motlogelwa, told MmegiSport that they pay P1,500 per training session to private playing field owners, which means 10 sessions amount to P15,000 when the national teams are in camp.
He revealed that the team conducts two training sessions per week. “We have been allocated a plot in Lobatse, which we cannot develop due to a lack of funds. It is hard for national teams to train because we have to hire fields,” Motlogelwa explained.
“Things are better during league matches because clubs such as BDF Cheetahs, Canon Jaguars, Gaborone Hogs, Jwaneng Wildebeests and BIUST have their own fields where they host matches.” Motlogelwa added that the 2026-2027 grant from BNSC stands at P800,000, which has been allocated to development, running of the league and administration.
He noted that the grant is insufficient as BRU needs a minimum of P2 million to run all structures, including school rugby, development of Under-18 and Under-20 sides.
There is also the men’s Division A league, women’s 15 aside, 10s tournament, 7s tournaments, and 7s and 15s national team assignments. When asked about the performance of the Vultures, Motlogelwa said the team has dropped from the top 12 in the African rugby rankings.
The Vultures competed in the Rugby Africa Cup Pool B repechage tournament in Morocco, securing a 36-10 victory against Cameroon, but fell to hosts, Morocco, 64-0. The Rugby Africa Cup served as a qualifier for the 2027 Rugby World Cup. Meanwhile, Motlogelwa said the proposed date for the BRU Annual General Meeting (AGM) is June 27. He explained that they changed the constitution to align it to the commencement of the government financial year. “It states that an AGM should be held 90 days after the end of the financial year to give enough time for the financial audit, just like BNSC. I suspect that funding will be discussed at length during the AGM by the affiliates.
“We currently rely fully on BNSC for funding, and it is far from what we need. The state of funding affected the quality of our sport. We cannot run the league properly, as teams are also struggling to travel and keep up with the league,” he said.
Motlogelwa highlighted that due to funding limitations, it is a challenge to expand rugby to other parts of the country, such as Shakawe, Maun, Kasane, Francistown, Gantsi, and Tsabong.