Prem Rugby is forecast to record revenues of more than £200m next year as the league seeks to counter the threat of the rebel R360 competition.
A financial report seen by the BBC — due to be published this month — shows rising revenues and a 44% reduction in “collective underlying losses” as the Prem recovers from a period of crisis. Player salaries have risen above pre-Covid levels, with an average wage of £192,000 compared with £177,000 in 2019.
The improved finances come amid warnings from R360 founders that the current club rugby model is “unsustainable”. Earlier this year, leading investors in the club game told the BBC the model was “fundamentally flawed” and expressed concern that other clubs could follow Wasps, Worcester and London Irish into administration.
There have been positive developments for the league: Newcastle were taken over by Red Bull, ticket sales and TV audiences have increased, and a lucrative new professional game partnership with the Rugby Football Union has been announced.
The Financial Monitoring Panel, which oversees the league’s finances, forecasts revenues will top £200m next year for the first time since the league moved to 10 teams, and expects three of the 10 clubs to break even in 2026. While running costs have been kept flat and losses reduced through “increased underlying revenues and cost control”, third-party debt remains around £100m, about 70% of which is owed to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport following the 2020 Covid bailouts.
“We know we have something very special with the Prem and we are on a good financial trajectory,” said Prem Rugby chief executive Simon Massie-Taylor. “Fan interest and engagement is exponentially increasing too, proving that there is plenty more commercial growth to go after. Our focus now is to continue to fuel this growth with amazing players playing for historic clubs. We have an incredibly competitive league with strong foundations built on high standards, financial control and strategic investments. Our vision is to be the best league in world rugby and I am very optimistic about the future.”
R360, due to launch next year, is fronted by World Cup winner Mike Tindall, former Bath player and coach Stuart Hooper, and sports agent Mark Spoors. They have proposed a global competition with eight men’s franchises and four for women, aiming to attract the world’s best players. Although R360 says its schedule would fit around the international calendar, national unions last month announced a blanket ban on international selection for anyone who signs up.
France captain Antoine Dupont has reaffirmed the status quo by re-signing with Toulouse, and several leading England players have committed their futures to Prem clubs to preserve national-team eligibility. Lock Alex Coles, who started England’s 38-18 win over Fiji, joined Northampton on a new deal alongside Fin Smith, Fraser Dingwall and Tommy Freeman.
“My goal over the next few years is to keep playing for England and make a World Cup squad,” Coles told BBC Sport. “Alongside that, trying to win something domestically and go one step further than we have in Europe. All those factors wiped out any possibility of the rebel league. It just shows how big a driver England is that all three of those other lads have also re-signed.”
