Regions will hope for a cash fillip from PRO14 negotiations

THE PRO14 are understood to have opened talks aimed at securing a major injection of funds into the tournament, offering the Welsh regions hope of a much-needed financial lift.

Determined not to see their competition left behind after the English Premiership concluded a £200million deal with former F1 owners CVC, PRO14 bosses are stepping efforts to attract more money in an environment that could soon be transformed.

It was reported last year that the PRO14 had been speaking to private equity firms at least 12 months before the English deal, with discussions ongoing and CVC among those thought to be involved.

Inaction doesn’t seem an option at a time when the colossal investment in English rugby threatens to bring higher wages there, more marquee players and a fresh TV deal that some predict could be worth up to £300million.

Invariably, there will be a knock-on effect for the rest of world rugby, with countries in both hemispheres likely to find their best players targeted by English clubs with money to burn.

By contrast, the Welsh regions are said to be still waiting to have their budgets for next season definitively signed off, notwithstanding the Professional Rugby Board (PRB) meetings held earlier this week. All concerned face huge financial challenges.

But the get-togethers on Tuesday and Wednesday were at least amicable, unlike the meetings during Welsh rugby’s years of strife between the regions and the WRU when the atmosphere in the sport at the top level in Wales was often toxic.