Bordeaux seem to represent a rare enough phenomenon; a domestic rugby team growing in both on-field and commercial success. They are the best attended club in France, to the extent they can boast to be more popular than the local football team.We all know of their on-field talent, the likes of Louis Bielle-Biarrey, Damian Penaud and Mathieu Jalibert playing a brand of rugby which is easy on the eye.Of course, with Joey Carbery and Noel McNamara involved, there is Irish interest in the French side as they prepare for Saturday’s Champions Cup final. But how has the on-field product built into their off-field success? Is their rise an indication of France’s domestic success, as rugby’s television rights continues to dwarf those of football’s Ligue 1? To what extent can this story be repeated elsewhere?Host Nathan Johns is joined on the podcast by France-based rugby journalist James Harrington.We'd love to find out what you think of The Counter Ruck podcast and to understand a little more about our listeners. Please take our survey and you'll be entered into a prize draw to win a €100 One4All gift card: https://www.research.net/r/CounterRuckWebAppProduced by John Casey. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.