World 12s seeks to create niche in global calendar

Fifteens, thirteens, tens, nines, sevens and now a dozen.

A new international rugby code called the World 12s has been launched.

The inaugural men’s tournament, featuring eight 24-player squads, will be staged across three weeks in England next August with the women’s first event taking place a year later.

The games will be 30 minutes, with six forwards and six backs on the field. An Indian Premier Leaguetype auction will be used to pick the players.

It faces a hurdle securing players however, with the inaugural tournament clashing with the Rugby Championship and the pre-season in the Northern Hemisphere.

It is hoped up to $485m will be generated by the competition over the next five years, according to reports.

A Global 10s tournament including Super Rugby teams and sides from France, Japan and Samoa took place in 2017 and 2018, won by the Chiefs and Blues respectively, but only lasted the two seasons.

The Telegraph reports ambassadors for the new code include coaches Sir Steve Hansen and Jake White, while former New Zealand Rugby boss Steve Tew is a non-executive director. Former Rugby Football Union chief executive Ian Ritchie is acting as chairman.

Whether it ever gets off the ground, however, remains to be seen as the game is currently wrestling with player welfare issues against a long-running backdrop of trying to reduce, rather than add fixtures.

A World Rugby spokesperson said: “While we welcome innovative thinking . . . comprehensive consultation with the organisers is required to understand the viability of the concept, particularly in the context of ongoing global calendar discussions and the priority area of player welfare.”

— Telegraph Group UK