RFU and Premiership Rugby Limited Sign Eight Year Agreement

The Rugby Football Union (RFU) and Premiership Rugby Limited (PRL) have agreed a new partnership for the next eight years (July 2024).

The agreement for club and country will see Premiership clubs benefit from the successful financial performance of England Rugby for the first time, as PRL and the RFU have agreed an appropriate share of rugby revenues as a basis for the investment over the life of the deal. This will enable both the RFU and the clubs to continue to grow together on and off the pitch, and to ensure all parties work together to make the domestic game and England international teams stronger in the future.

The partnership is worth over £200 million, with the first four year payment fixed at £112 million. The second four year payment could potentially be higher than £112 million subject to financial performance under the rugby revenue share partnership approach. The funding model for the clubs is based on the English Qualified Player (EQP) threshold being met, the Elite Player Squads (EPS) and standards for club academies being achieved. 

The announcement follows on from a new five-year funding deal between the RFU, Rugby Players Association and PRL last season which sees a minimum of £7m injected into the RPA welfare, personal development and education programmes to support 650 current and over 350 former RPA members.

The new agreement will include increased funding of academies, and new academy licences have been awarded to 14 professional clubs. This will build on the success of the England Rugby academy system and will see increased investment directed to develop players of the highest quality for clubs and the national team. The recent successes of the England U20s side, winning three World Rugby U20 Championship titles in the last four years, highlights the partnership between the RFU and clubs in producing thriving academies.

Premiership Rugby will now manage and sell the commercial rights of the Anglo Welsh Cup from the beginning of this season while the RFU will continue to regulate the competition.

The new partnership will not affect the level of investment the RFU puts into the community game. Last year saw record levels being invested into grassroots rugby in England, across a multitude of areas.

The RFU and Premiership Rugby will also commit to a multi-million pound community programme.

Ian Ritchie, RFU Chief Executive said: “This is a true partnership focussed on making English rugby the best in the world for club and country. A strong partnership between the RFU and the PRL is critical if we are to grow professional rugby across the country for the benefit of the players, fans and the game.