Top flight to be cut down to 10 teams
The Premiership is set to be reduced to 10 teams as it looks to become more financially viable.
The move would see the Premiership Cup played during international windows and ensure that clubs had their best players available throughout the league campaign.
Premiership Rugby, which is negotiating a new player agreement deal with the Rugby Football Union with the current one having just over a season to run, has been canvassing the opinions of its 11 shareholders.
“We have just had a meeting with PRL and I think we are heading for a 10–team league,” said Gloucester's head coach, George Skivington. “That would allow for proper international breaks with a cup competition in the autumn and during the Six Nations so we can develop young lads. “As a product, rugby will be better when clubs have all their best players on the field. We could fill the grounds and get more people watching on television. Those international spells create a bit of chaos and while they provide opportunities for young players, I think you are better doing that around a Premiership Cup while Tests are being played.”
Premiership Rugby's CEO Simon Massie-Taylor confirmed that talks were being held about a 10-team competition.
“A lot has been talked around a 10-team league and you can see the logic within that because a number of our games are clashing with the international windows,” he told the BBC.
“That has an impact on viewership and attendances. There are nine million rugby fans and the vast majority will flip to watch England play.
“You should not be bumping up against someone who is in your market like that.
“The question is what is the sustainable number of teams to operate in the Premiership. There is a player welfare debate as well and 10 could reduce some of the loading and there is a quality piece: does less is more equal higher quality match-ups and games? There is a strong argument for that.”
How would 11 go into 10? “That is something we are very sensitive to because we have 11 shareholding clubs,” he said.
“Is it in a structured way or promotion and relegation? That bit we are debating at the moment and there is also the question of when.”
The RFU and PRL have said they want to revamp the Championship. If the Premiership is reduced to 10 teams, promotion and relegation would resume to give the one of the current 11 who misses out the chance to come back, assuming no one follows Worcester and Wasps into administration.
“An odd number in the Premiership does not work,” said Rob Baxter, Exeter's director of rugby. “Ten does because it takes away the international clashes and gives you the chance to promote the Premiership with the best players as often as possible. I didn't mind it when we had 12 clubs. It was ridiculous when we went to 13: we take some really weird decisions at times. Ten or 12 are both workable.
“We have to make sure we get this right. One narrative is that we do not have a level playing field in the Champions Cup because others have more money to spend than we do. We have to get our house in order and make the Premiership one of the most vibrant competitions in the world and get England performing really well and winning the Six Nations and the World Cup.
“Then we can get bigger television deals and raise the salary cap to take us to a level above the Top 14 or the best United Rugby Championship sides. Create a good competition on the field and it is then about the governance getting everything else right.”
Gloucester's season was blown off course at the start of the autumn. They went into November on the back of four successive victories but then lost three in a row having had to field a new back division apart from scrum-half Charlie Chapman.
“We were flying before the autumn and then lost a lot of players,” said Skivington. “It is the nature of the beast because you develop people and they become internationals.
“We were not good enough in that period and it killed us. After that, we got one injury after another and it stemmed our flow. The international period was really harmful and from the point of view of spectators and the popularity of the sport you want the best players available every week.
“Most people are thinking that the league will go to 10 teams. How it gets there is down to the powers-that-be. We have all given our opinions to PRL and they will shape it. And there is an opportunity to do so.”
