Players’ welfare put first

RUGBY Australia has shelved plans to add four extra teams to the 2027 World Cup, after the sudden introduction of new tournament rules to protect the welfare of players.

Approved just in time for Friday’s release of the official match draw for the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France, all teams will now be given a minimum of five days’ rest between games and allowed to increase the size of their squads from 31 to 33 players.

The number of teams will remain at 20 – split into four pools of five – but the new regulations mean the tournament will be lengthened by an extra week, with the next edition starting on September 8, 2023 and finishing 50 days later in Paris.

The new regulations were agreed to after months of talks between World Rugby officials and player representatives.

They have been welcomed by the Rugby Union Players’ Association chief executive Justin Harrison.

“These are the sort of things that need to happen. We need to find a balance between commercial viability and welfare focus,” the former Wallaby told News Corp.

“This is a follow-on from the increased willingness to have players very much a part of policy design and genuine consultation phase.”

World Rugby sources confirmed that the new regulations would also apply to the 2027 World Cup, which Australia is strongly tipped to be chosen to host.

That means World Rugby’s proposal to expand the number of competing teams to 24 won’t happen in 2027, significantly reducing the costs for the successful host nation, while opening up new opportunities for bigger crowds and extra tourism dollars with the addition of the extra week.

“There’s a lot of upsides,” Australia’s bid executive director Phil Kearns (above) said.