Earlier this week World Rugby imposed a four-figure fine on England for their V-shaped formation when facing New Zealand’s haka. World Rugby regulations state opponents must not cross the halfway line while the Maori war dance is being performed and six England players could be seen in breach of the ruling. New Zealand dismissed the significance of the incident with their scrum-half Aaron Smith even revealing England’s captain Owen Farrell was winking at him during the performance and many Maori commentators lamenting that more rugby teams don’t come up with ways to challenge the traditional dance. It is believed the World Rugby’s governing body was under pressure to act, having introduced its “cultural ritual protocol” after France’s response to haka in 2007 when the players ended up almost nose to nose, with France forming a tricolor with red, white and blue T-shirts.
We asked Janelle Joseph, assistant professor at the University of Toronto Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education, to weigh in on the matter. Joseph specializes in critical studies of race and indigeneity in sport.
Are you familiar with the “cultural ritual protocol”? What is it and does it only apply to rugby?
I am not aware of the protocol in any other sport. The cultural ritual protocol requires teams to stay back 10 meters from opponents and behind the halfway line. This applies to rugby because this is the sport where a confrontational cultural ritual, the haka, is routinely performed at the highest level of international competition. The haka is commonly referred to as a “war” dance, but haka is the generic name for all Maori dance forms performed by men and women. When I worked at the University of Otago in 2010, I learned a haka to perform in a university multicultural ceremony. In rugby the ritual includes movements of the face such as dilating eyes and protruding tongue, and movements of the arms, torso and legs, all while reciting words and slapping thighs with hands for emphasis. This is performed to invigorate the athletes, prepare them for competition, and intimidate their opponents, while also displaying Aoteraoa (Indigenous New Zealand) cultural pride.
What might be the advantages or challenges of having “cultural ritual protocols” in sport?
An advantage of the protocol ensures that athletes can perform it safely and that opponents do not interfere. As the main focus of international sport is entertainment, the protocol allows for an entertaining start to every game involving the New Zealand national rugby men’s team, the All Blacks, or women’s team, the Black Ferns. One challenge of having the protocol that we saw with the 2011 response by France and the 2019 response by England is that teams are willing to pay the paltry fines of less than $10,000 CAD when they pay each player over $35,000 CAD per match. The protocol is not a true deterrent. I imagine we will see it breached more often in the coming years if the fines are not increased at least ten fold.
How do you feel about England getting fined for their response to New Zealand’s haka? Was it worthy of punishment or praise?
The response to New Zealand’s haka and the fine are strategic from a sport marketing perspective. England was able to generate news beyond winning the match at relatively little cost. They should be punished for violating the rules, but praised for implementing a response to the haka that shows they will not be intimidated.