Rugby Club World Cup: How would proposed new competition work?

Change: The implementation of the proposed Rugby Club World Cup would see the Heineken Champions Cup scrapped
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George Flood7 April 2020

As is the case with sports around the world, the current coronavirus shutdown has thrown up no shortage of crises, questions and radical ideas in rugby union.

Domestic and continental competitions around the globe - as well as the latter stages of the Six Nations - have ground to a halt or been called off altogether and many international tours and fixtures are now in serious doubt, sparking further huge financial concerns for unions and clubs everywhere.

While previous proposals for a new Nations Championship beginning in 2022 were scrapped last year due to a lack of support, former France and Toulon head coach Bernard Laporte believes the significant impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic mean it is time for further innovation to keep the game afloat.

The current French Rugby Federation president - who is seeking to be elected as Bill Beaumont's vice-president of World Rugby next month - has garnered headlines in recent days by proposing a Club World Cup.

"This crisis must push us to be innovative," he said. "Let's make this new competition, I'm sure that the public, partners and televisions will follow.

"Faced with today's threats, we need to move the lines, increase aid and imagine what rugby will be like tomorrow."

The new proposal has been detailed by former France coach Bernard Laporte
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What is Laporte's proposal?

Speaking to French newspaper Midi Olympique on Monday, Laporte - the former French Secretary of State for Sport - said he had been working with Beaumont on plans to potentially restructure the international calendar and create a new window dedicated for clubs, allowing for a new, 20-team global club tournament.

Such a competition - to be held annually outside of World Cup years - would see the semi-finalists from France's Top 14 and the English Premiership, the top four from the Pro14, the top six from Super Rugby and the respective champions from Japan's Top League and Major League Rugby in the USA divided into four pools consisting of five teams.

This replicates the current World Cup format, with the top two finishers from each group then progressing through to the quarter-finals, with semi-finals and the final to follow.

The idea would be for the tournament to take place across a condensed six-week time frame during the summer.

What about the Champions Cup?

Under Laporte's proposal, in order not to overload the calendar and to free up more space, the Heineken Champions Cup would be scrapped, with nine weekends made available as a result.

His justification for this is that the current top-level European competition does not make enough cash in comparison to a global club tournament, which he hopes can generate the funds needed to allow unions to finance the game at professional and amateur level.

Saracens - due to be relegated from the English Premiership - are the current European champions
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"The European competition is magnificent," Laporte said. "With Toulon I was able to lift the trophy three times and I know what it can represent.

"But let's be frank, it doesn't generate enough income. If we want to develop this Club World Cup, we have to find dates."

What has the reaction been?

Laporte said that RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney and those in charge of the Top 14 were "excited" by the project.

However, Bath owner Bruce Craig believes a Club World Cup should not be under the control of World Rugby.

He told The Guardian: “This project is a club competition, not an international tournament and must therefore be piloted by the clubs; it should not be placed under the aegis of World Rugby.

"Whatever happens in the coming months, club rugby must remain managed by the clubs, it is non-negotiable.”

In a statement released on Monday night, European Professional Club Rugby - the governing body that organises the Champions and Challenge Cups - revealed that they had already held talks with shareholders over a new global club tournament.

Bath owner Bruce Craig wants the competition to be managed by clubs, rather than World Rugby
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However, one that would complement - rather than replace - the existing European competitions and take place every four years, rather than annually.

"Work on possible formats is ongoing with a collaborative approach and issues of player welfare to the fore," the statement read.

"EPCR does not believe it appropriate to highlight such discussions while the public health crisis due to COVID-19 continues, and currently, the organisation’s focus is on attempting to reschedule the knockout stages of the 2019/20 tournaments subject to government and local authority directives."

What is the next step?

Laporte said the proposal will be detailed in Beaumont and his election manifesto, which is being sent out to individual federations this week.

The World Rugby elections are due to take place next month, with Laporte replacing Agustin Pichot as Beaumont's vice-chair candidate.

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