22 January 2024 , 09:00
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Ellis Genge hopes rugby can follow in the footsteps of UFC as its looks to expand its reach with its first Netflix documentary.
The global streaming service has teamed up with the Six Nations and is dropping its first ever fly-on-the-wall show on the eve of this year's tournament. Rugby union, particularly in England and Wales, is enduring a difficult period with several teams going bankrupt amid continued financial struggles.
Attendances and a dwindling fan base are also problems which the sport hopes the Netflix show, named Six Nations: Full Contact , can help solve. Genge is hopeful rugby can take the lead of the UFC, who have endured a rapid rise over the past decade with its content going viral.
He said: "Obviously it is incredible having massive names like that, obviously Amazon had a short involvement. It is class seeing rugby on streaming platforms, I think rugby is in a little bit of a bubble, it thinks it is the be all and end all, but it is not, you see these massive events like boxing and UFC and you need help to lift the game.
"The UFC was probably in our position 15 years ago and they've used all these amazing networks to lift it up and hopefully we can do the same. It (rugby) needs everything, it needs all the help it can get as bluntly as that sounds. It needs stars and idols."
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Formula 1 has perhaps enjoyed the biggest success story after it allowed the Netflix cameras into its inner sanctum. The Drive To Survive series began in 2018 and has helped take the motorsport to new heights with its popularity thriving. Golf and tennis have since followed suit.
Those series help viewers get a greater understanding of the sportsmen away from their respective arenas. Six Nations: Full Contact does likewise and will follow numerous players away from the rugby pitch with Genge hopeful that attachment to individuals will also drive popularity.
UFC has enjoyed a huge rise in popularity over the past decade and Genge hopes rugby can do similar"You look at all the sports that people follow - the NFL, basketball - all huge sports," he added. "They follow the individual, not necessarily the team. You've got your team that you support, but everyone knows what [Lionel] Messi and [Cristiano] Ronaldo are doing. I don't even watch NFL, don't know any of the teams, but I know the players. Are we going to get there? Who knows."
The trailer for the show has been released and also demonstrates a focus on the coaches. Some of the team leaders have become huge hits in other series, such as former Haas boss Guenther Steiner, who was immensely popular in the F1 series Drive To Survive.
Warren Gatland, Steve Borthwick and Gregor Townsend lead the home nations and Genge believes over time they could become attractions themselves. He said: "I think within reason (coaches need to change their mindset). You're seeing more coaches being more flamboyant on the sidelines, not necessarily turning up suited and booted like Pep [Guardiola], but I think the more the game grows the more opportunity there is for that to happen."