The Six Nations and Sanzaar are engaged in ongoing discussions with World Rugby regarding the structure of the Nations Championship, specifically concerning the introduction of relegation rules. The 10 leading unions recently established F10, a new company designed to manage the Nations Championship and handle broadcast and commercial rights for competitions excluding the World Cup, which remains under World Rugby’s control.
Concerns have emerged that certain founding members, particularly Wales and Italy, may seek safeguards to prevent relegation to the second-tier Nations Cup. Additionally, World Rugby and smaller unions are advocating for the Nations Cup’s commercial rights to be sold together with those of the Nations Championship, ensuring smaller unions receive a share of revenues. The Nations Championship has secured more than 80 broadcast deals for the current year, while the Nations Cup has obtained only 13, with many games streamed through World Rugby’s RugbyPass TV platform.
Japan and Fiji currently hold invitational status for the Nations Championship through 2030, at which point World Rugby’s licensing agreement mandates the introduction of promotion and relegation. The Nations Championship was approved by the World Rugby Council before the 2023 World Cup final with a requirement that it function as an open league from 2030 onwards, allowing all teams to face potential relegation with one promotion spot available from the Nations Cup.
Sources indicate that any effort to protect founding members from relegation would require World Rugby Council approval, as it would constitute a significant deviation from conditions agreed upon previously. The original approval vote achieved an 80% majority, making reopening discussions a risky proposition that could destabilize the tournament. Six Nations officials maintain that relegation will proceed as scheduled, though they acknowledge that specific implementation details remain under negotiation, with particular focus on financial protections for relegated unions.
Article Attribution | Read More at Article Source
Article summary produced by Claude AI