New Zealand Rugby has always been willing to invest in the black jersey. The surprising thing is that even with a record income, profits are still limited.
Where’s this loss coming from? Everyone knows Kiwis have always had a keen eye for a good deal. It’s no surprise that when it comes to having a spin on the pokies - another favorite pastime down under - the highest payout casinos for NZ players are the most popular ones. So why isn’t their national team delivering a high payout too?
Now, on paper, NZR is doing the right job, investing more into the team, growing its revenue, and funneling back for more. That begs the question, how much do All Blacks get paid? What is the average All Black salary?
In May 2025, New Zealand Rugby reported a record income of NZ$285m but also a NZ$19.5m net deficit for the financial year 2025. Although the board said its operational results are near break-even, we can’t just ignore this loss.
NZR chair David Kirk said that the deficit was not a cash loss, and pointed out that there is NZ$174.5m sitting in reserve.
“While the book loss of $19.5m was noteworthy, it should be recognised that this is not a cash loss and should not detract from NZR's solid operational performance and the organisation's $174.5m reserves demonstrates the organisation's strong cash position,” Kirk said.
Now, one must admit that it’s great to have solved a huge problem, but it also shows a very odd problem. While the board makes a lot of money, it’s still set up in a way that burns money more quickly.
On the other hand, Mark Robinson, NZR’s chief executive, said that the game is currently going through a high rise in fixed costs and a very volatile market. According to him, the All Blacks still sell, just not hard enough to gain more.
“This year's result again demonstrates that the high fixed-cost structure we live within is not sustainable, even as we grow our overall revenue,” Robinson explained.
Fans might think that the budget is mostly spent on player contracts, but in reality, it’s far from the truth. An All Blacks salary is just one of a stack of costs that keeps compounding season after season.
Here’s where the big spends are mainly made:
Player contracting and retention
High-performance programmes
Commercial growth
Legal and partnership management
Domestic game support
It is reported that NZR invested NZ$11.7m into the commercial growth of a streaming and content push. So, while these commercial growth spends are made with a long-term result in mind, they might just end up looking like a bad spend in the accounting books.
Also, sometimes the sponsorship money can get messy as well. NZR’s legal action against INEOS is a reminder that top-tier revenue can often be problematic, even at the All Blacks’ scale.
Here’s a quick snapshot of the publicly reported figures in FY2024 by NZR:
Record income: NZ$285m
Net deficit (book loss): NZ$19.5m
Reserves/cash position: NZ$174.5
How much do All Blacks get paid? Fans generally ask this question to understand whether or not New Zealand can keep elite players in the team, particularly when Japan and Europe are offering much bigger cheques for an easier schedule. The frustrating answer is, much like all sports, All Blacks pay is rarely made available to the public. But we can assume that the deals vary depending on the seniority, match involvement, and other arrangements.
The spending on the team has increased from $75m in 2023 to $84m in 2024, which is a 9% increase in a single year. Now, the accounts don’t necessarily reveal where the cost is coming from, but it’s hard to believe that the All Blacks were not the main driver.
With room for speculation, the internet fills in the gap to answer how much does an All Black get paid, which is why the debate over the average All Black salary never dies. You can find hundreds of these debates on Reddit.
Commenters sharing ranges and contracts from past reporting, where most of them are rumours. Nothing there is official, but it goes to show just how curious fans are to understand where spending is going and how much their favourite All Blacks pay is.
