Fiji wing Nemani Nadolo has urged Sanzaar to include a Pacific Island team in Super Rugby.
The competition reverted to a 15-team system in 2018, with the Cheetahs, Kings and Force given the boot at the end of the 2017 tournament.
The current structure and format will run for at least the next two seasons until the end of 2019 when the competition’s broadcast deal expires.
Nadolo believes Sanzaar has to consider the inclusion of a Pacific Island team beyond 2019.
‘We need a team that’s going to put us back on the map and Super Rugby would be the ideal competition,’ Nadolo told FoxSports.
‘If you took a game to islands and put the ticket prices down, you’re going to get numbers through and it’ll bring everyone together. I’d combine a Samoan, Tongan, Fijian mixture because we’re probably limited to what we can do, and all our players all play overseas,’ he added.
‘A Pacific Islander team would be ideal because having one country is probably not fair to us. We’re all in the same league in terms of infrastructure – rugby-wise – and resources, so if we can combine with one force and attack Super Rugby, it would be pretty exciting to see, and you’re going to get more numbers and more interest from the Pacific Islander community.
‘In Samoa, Tonga and Fiji, they idolise Super Rugby. They watch more Super Rugby than their heroes who play in Europe.’
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