Six Nations should stage Ireland matches in USA, but not England ones November 7, 2025 There have been calls this week for Six Nations matches to be played in the United States, and I agree. But it should never be England crossing the Atlantic, and should almost always be Ireland. Andy Farrell’s Ireland successfully staged an epic spectacle at Soldier Field in Chicago against New Zealand. The game was pretty [...]
Fatter, lazier, more inactive: How businesses like Canterbury rely on healthy population November 3, 2025 Canterbury is a globally recognised brand, but it relies on a healthy population to invest in pro sports deals. By the end of the decade 3bn of us could be insufficiently active – a figure not far short of the world’s population, minus Asia, right now. It is something that Simon Rowe describes as a [...]
Formula 1 and The Hundred offer lessons in governance for fragmented likes of rugby November 1, 2025 To succeed, sports need governance structures that empower one entity to steer it, as in Formula 1, The Hundred and SailGP, writes Nevin Truesdale. The increasing commercialisation of sport has seen historical governance structures come under scrutiny. As in any business, governance structures are central to the ability to evolve in response to a changing [...]
World Rugby Nations Championship silence is deafening but predictable October 31, 2025 The World Rugby Nations Championship starts next year after the last ever autumn internationals campaign this year. Or does it? This is the last ever autumn rugby union series, not that you’d have any idea. Gone will be the days of friendly matches on chilly November evenings and in will come games with a trophy [...]
New Principality Stadium naming rights deal ‘challenging’, says former negotiator October 30, 2025 The timing of a new deal for the naming rights of Cardiff’s Principality Stadium has been described as “challenging for Welsh rugby” given the state of the game across the River Severn. The 73,931-capacity stadium on the banks of the Taff is the fourth largest in the UK and plays host to the Wales rugby [...]
Barbarians: Inside rugby team playing All Blacks in London this weekend October 28, 2025 The Barbarians are taking on an All Blacks XV this weekend at Premier League club Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium in London. Rugby’s financial structure is bizarre at the best of times: on one hand you’ve got teams playing every week struggling to make ends meet, and on the other hand you’ve got the British and [...]
Welsh rugby should keep Scarlets but scrap Cardiff, Ospreys and Dragons October 24, 2025 With a decision expected at the end of the month, I back radical change to Welsh rugby’s regional structure. I wasn’t entirely shocked to read this week that there were over 80,000 tickets remaining for Wales’s autumn internationals, even though they’re taking on three of the southern hemisphere’s Big Four, plus Japan. What did flabbergast [...]
Gloucester Rugby call on fans for investment fund raise October 20, 2025 Gloucester Rugby are set to announce plans for a fan-led fund raise in a bid to “protect the future” of the club. The Cherry and Whites last year added City fund manager Jack Ingles to an investor group that comprises majority owner Martin St Quinton and minority shareholder Tim Griffiths. But the Prem Rugby club [...]
England Rugby should buy London Stadium and flog Twickenham land October 17, 2025 How do you solve a problem like increasing the revenues for England Rugby? Up sticks and buy the London Stadium, suggests Ollie Phillips Given the obstacles being thrown towards Allianz Stadium and England Rugby from local residents relating to the number of concerts the home of rugby wants to stage, it is no surprise that [...]
European stadiums to bid for South Africa rugby Test vs New Zealand October 16, 2025 Top European stadiums are set to battle it out to host a special rugby Test match between New Zealand and South Africa. The All Blacks and Springboks have announced a British and Irish Lions-style tour for 2026 with New Zealand heading to the African continent. The tour will culminate in three Tests across Johannesburg and [...]