Premiership spending drops - but fly-halves earn big
Fly-half remains the best paid position in rugby union's Premiership, while scrum-half is the lowest paid.Figures in the latest Premiership Rugby salary cap report show senior player salaries dropped by 11.4% between the 2022-23 season and 2023-24.However, there was a 14.5% increase in academy players' salaries, indicating a shift towards investing in homegrown talent.The latest salary cap report, external covers just the 2023-24 season, not the current 2024-25 campaign which soon ends. Most positions have seen an average drop in salary, but fly-half, back-row and hooker all saw average increases.Starting with the highest-paid to the lowest, the positions are ranked: fly-half, back-row, centre, lock, prop, full-back, hooker, wing and scrum-half.The mean average for a fly-half was up to £231,182 and for a scrum-half £119,614.Senior squad sizes are down from an average of 47 to 43 and the income of players with more than 50 international caps went down by an average of almost £22,000.
What is an excluded player?
Each of the 10 Premiership clubs can have one player not included in the salary cap. They are known as the 'excluded player', sometimes also called the 'marquee player'.The average income of an excluded player was £569,531 - up from £510,005 in 2022-23.The report notes that "excluded players are not always the highest-paid players."It adds: "The average income of the top 10 earners during the 2023-24 season was £609,177 and three of the 10 excluded players were not in the top 10 earners."The salary cap report is produced at the conclusion of an annual audit of all 10 Premiership clubs, conducted by an independent accountant appointed by Premiership Rugby.Clubs have to provide access to the likes of player contracts, commercial contracts and invoices. Salary cap director Andrew Rogers also conducts interviews with selected players and officials at every club.The winners of the Premiership, which in 2024 were Northampton Saints, are always subject to an extended audit. This involves the use of "forensic technology" to assess communications between players and club staff and includes working through emails as well as WhatsApp and text messages.The report commended Northampton on their approach and support of the extended audit process.
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