Latest news with #SimonGillham
The Independent
16-05-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
RFU unveils plans for radical revamp of second tier of English rugby
A six-team promotion play-off for the right to play in the top flight will take place in the newly-rebranded Champ Rugby league from next season. The second tier of English rugby will be known as Champ Rugby from the 2025/26 season and will consist of 14 teams, including the 12 current Championship sides, along with Richmond, who have been promoted from National League One, and Worcester Warriors. Teams will play each other home and away over 26 rounds of the regular season. Clubs who finish in the top six will qualify for the play-offs, starting with quarter-finals between the third to sixth-placed teams followed by semis for the winners of those against the top two ranked sides. The winner of the final will be crowned Champ Rugby champion and will face the bottom team in the Gallagher Premiership in a two-legged promotion/relegation play-off. The winner will play in the top flight the following season, subject to meeting the minimum standards criteria. Tier 2 board chair Simon Gillham said in a statement: "We are excited to announce the structure of Champ Rugby, which will bring a highly-competitive and gripping conclusion to the season, providing both aspiration and jeopardy. "We have worked closely with the clubs and stakeholders on developing a compelling league format that rewards ambition and plays a key role in growing the sport, supporting both player and club development." Despite finishing top of the Championship this season, Ealing Trailfinders were denied a shot at promotion after not meeting the minimum standards, but Gillham suggested the criteria could be revisited in future. He told reporters at an online briefing: "There still will be minimum operating standards. "Without telling tales out of turn, we've had discussions and an oral commitment that we will be revisiting those minimum operating standards for next year, because, quite frankly, the way things happened this year was not satisfactory as far as Tier 2 was concerned. We definitely need to revisit that." When asked what could be done to help bridge the gap in funding between the Premiership and Champ Rugby, Gillham added: "That's something we're discussing right now. "We've started exchanges with the RFU (Rugby Football Union) and Premiership. It's absolutely right that the current gap in funding makes it difficult for someone who goes up then to stay up. "The way it's structured at the moment means it's a problem, but things can be renegotiated and we very much will continue to push forward the idea for a strengthened Championship. That means funding as well. "I think one of the first things we've got to do as a Championship, and what we're doing now, is to make our claim stronger, get all the clubs together and work as a collective." At the opposite end of the table, the team that finishes bottom of Champ Rugby will be relegated to National League One, whose champions will be promoted, subject to the Champ Rugby minimum standards. The teams who finish 12th and 13th in Champ Rugby will meet in a one-off fixture, with the loser facing the National League One play-off winner over one leg for a spot in the second tier.
CNA
15-05-2025
- Sport
- CNA
English second tier becomes 'Champ Rugby' with promise of easier promotion
LONDON :The second tier of English club rugby is to be relaunched as 'Champ Rugby' with a new promotion and relegation structure and promises of an easier pathway into the Premiership for ambitious clubs previously stymied by exacting demands on ground capacity. Revealed by the RFU on Thursday, the 14-team league for next season will include the 12 current clubs, a re-formed Worcester, who went bust and dropped out of the Premiership 2022, and Richmond, champions of the third tier National League this season. All teams will play each other in home and away fixtures over 26 rounds, leading to playoffs and a final. The champions will then face the Premiership's bottom club in a two-legged playoff, with promotion subject to the Champ club meeting the minimum standards criteria that have caused so much disquiet in recent years. There will also be relegation and playoffs at the bottom end of the table. Ealing Trailfinders and others have routinely been kept out of the top tier by strict rules that demand a phased ground capacity of 10,001, or evidence of plans to be able to introduce such a development, as well as other financial commitments. The clubs have argued that it is unreasonable and unrealistic to expect them to spend huge amounts on plans, let alone development, to reach a capacity they might never need. Simon Gillham, Tier 2 Board Chair, told a media briefing that the way things happened this season (with only one club, Doncaster, ruled suitable for promotion) was "not satisfactory". "It strikes one as a closed shop and protectionism and those are things that we really don't want to see in sport," he said. "We have an oral commitment that we will be revising those minimum standards. There needs to be a runway and a three-year plan and then if you don't meet that plan you have committed to after a year, then you are out.' This new-found appreciation of a pathway to the top – with Exeter's climb through the ranks to be crowned champions always held up as the ultimate example - remains at odds with the thoughts of many Premiership clubs and RFU CEO Bill Sweeney, who said last month that he thought the Premiership should be a closed shop, with new clubs joining only as part of a franchise model. The issue of funding that might enable a promoted club to be competitive also remains far from clear. The RFU's funding of Championship clubs has plummeted from 600,000 pounds ($797,280) per club to 160,000 in recent years. "It is absolutely right that the current gap in funding makes it difficult for someone who goes up to stay up," Gillham said. There will be a "centralised resource dedicated to the championship", while discussions are ongoing with potential sponsors. Conor O'Shea, the RFU's director of performance rugby, said there were "grown up conversations" taking place about funding but said he saw the relaunch as part of a potentially glorious period for English rugby with the Champ playing a hugely important part in the development of young players. 'Our focus is the step change we want to make in the Champ. It's already a great competition, but we want all the standards across the board to grow," he said. New rules will mean 18 players in a matchday squad must be English-qualified, with an allowance of six players per matchday squad dual-registered with a Premiership club. The launch promotion highlighted how several of the new British and Irish Lions squad cut their teeth in the second tier, with Northampton's breakthrough star Henry Pollock playing for Bedford last season. "Henry is the first cab off the rank of three to four generational players," O'Shea said. "Our job is to create the structure for the players to fulfil their talent. This is going to be a very special time if we get it right." ($1 = 0.7526 pounds)
Reuters
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
English second tier becomes 'Champ Rugby' with promise of easier promotion
LONDON, May 15 (Reuters) - The second tier of English club rugby is to be relaunched as 'Champ Rugby' with a new promotion and relegation structure and promises of an easier pathway into the Premiership for ambitious clubs previously stymied by exacting demands on ground capacity. Revealed by the RFU on Thursday, the 14-team league for next season will include the 12 current clubs, a re-formed Worcester, who went bust and dropped out of the Premiership 2022, and Richmond, champions of the third tier National League this season. All teams will play each other in home and away fixtures over 26 rounds, leading to playoffs and a final. The champions will then face the Premiership's bottom club in a two-legged playoff, with promotion subject to the Champ club meeting the minimum standards criteria that have caused so much disquiet in recent years. There will also be relegation and playoffs at the bottom end of the table. Ealing Trailfinders and others have routinely been kept out of the top tier by strict rules that demand a phased ground capacity of 10,001, or evidence of plans to be able to introduce such a development, as well as other financial commitments. The clubs have argued that it is unreasonable and unrealistic to expect them to spend huge amounts on plans, let alone development, to reach a capacity they might never need. Simon Gillham, Tier 2 Board Chair, told a media briefing that the way things happened this season (with only one club, Doncaster, ruled suitable for promotion) was "not satisfactory". "It strikes one as a closed shop and protectionism and those are things that we really don't want to see in sport," he said. "We have an oral commitment that we will be revising those minimum standards. There needs to be a runway and a three-year plan and then if you don't meet that plan you have committed to after a year, then you are out.' This new-found appreciation of a pathway to the top – with Exeter's climb through the ranks to be crowned champions always held up as the ultimate example - remains at odds with the thoughts of many Premiership clubs and RFU CEO Bill Sweeney, who said last month that he thought the Premiership should be a closed shop, with new clubs joining only as part of a franchise model. The issue of funding that might enable a promoted club to be competitive also remains far from clear. The RFU's funding of Championship clubs has plummeted from 600,000 pounds ($797,280) per club to 160,000 in recent years. "It is absolutely right that the current gap in funding makes it difficult for someone who goes up to stay up," Gillham said. There will be a "centralised resource dedicated to the championship", while discussions are ongoing with potential sponsors. Conor O'Shea, the RFU's director of performance rugby, said there were "grown up conversations" taking place about funding but said he saw the relaunch as part of a potentially glorious period for English rugby with the Champ playing a hugely important part in the development of young players. 'Our focus is the step change we want to make in the Champ. It's already a great competition, but we want all the standards across the board to grow," he said. New rules will mean 18 players in a matchday squad must be English-qualified, with an allowance of six players per matchday squad dual-registered with a Premiership club. The launch promotion highlighted how several of the new British and Irish Lions squad cut their teeth in the second tier, with Northampton's breakthrough star Henry Pollock playing for Bedford last season. "Henry is the first cab off the rank of three to four generational players," O'Shea said. "Our job is to create the structure for the players to fulfil their talent. This is going to be a very special time if we get it right." ($1 = 0.7526 pounds)
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
English second tier gets Champ Rugby rebrand in new 14-club league
English rugby union's second tier will be rebranded as Champ Rugby from next season in a move designed to raise standards and add greater aspiration and jeopardy for clubs. Beneath the glitzy launch, however, many questions still remain. Simon Gillham, the Tier 2 chair, said that the new-look league of 14 clubs would bring a 'gripping conclusion to the season' – with the top six entering a playoff tournament for the right to face the bottom-placed Premiership club for a promotion place. However, Gillham confirmed that discussions have not yet concluded on terms for promotion, with minimum operating standards still to be agreed. Related: The Breakdown | Rugby union's bonus points barely change the Premiership table. Should we scrap them? The thorny issue of whether a promoted club will have to purchase a P-share, allowing them to participate in the Premiership's financial benefits and governance, has also not been decided. Ealing Trailfinders did not meet the minimum standards for promotion this season despite winning the Championship, and Gillham refused to speculate on the chances of a club from Champ Rugby going up next year. However he insisted: 'We will do everything to be at the table and to make sure that there's proper aspiration and there's proper jeopardy. That is absolutely what we are determined to do.' Another complicating factor is that Rugby Football Union chief executive, Bill Sweeney, recently warned that promotion and relegation 'does not work', while Premiership clubs are angling for a ringfenced league based on franchises. But Conor O'Shea, who sits on the Tier 2 board as well as being the RFU executive director of performance rugby, said that 'grown-up conversations' would take place to ensure the dream of promotion remained a possibility. 'As it stands, at the end of next season there will be a promotion/relegation playoff based on minimum standards,' said O'Shea. 'We know that only Doncaster met them this year. The discussions are, how do we improve that? How do you make it accessible without breaking clubs?' 'There is a heck of a lot of work to do,' he added. 'Our focus is the step change we want to make in the Champ. It's already a great competition, but we want all the standards across the board to grow.' Organisers are yet to announce a title sponsor. However with the bottom club being relegated, and the 13th placed club facing a relegation playoff against the National League One runner-up, the hope is that more matches will matter, leading to greater interest and bigger crowds to raise revenue. As part of England Rugby's strategy to attract new audiences, the launch video is voiced by the rugby influencer and YouTuber Max Brown. 'This is where we raise the bar,' Brown says as pounding music plays. 'Where standards are set. Where mettle is tested. Where stars rise. And where hype is realised. We build players who refuse to back down and clubs that demand respect. Communities fuelled by passion. Rivalries played out on a national stage. 'We live for the good of the game. Pushing it further. Driving English Rugby forwards. Match by match, moment by moment. This is the ultimate test. Welcome to the proving ground. This is Champ Rugby.'
The Guardian
15-05-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
English rugby's second tier gets Champ rebrand in new 14-club league
English rugby union's second tier will be rebranded as the Champ from next season in a move designed to raise standards and add greater aspiration and jeopardy for clubs. Beneath the glitzy launch, however, many questions still remain. Simon Gillham, the Tier 2 chair, said that the new-look league of 14 clubs would bring a 'gripping conclusion to the season' – with the top six entering a playoff tournament for the right to face the bottom-placed Premiership club for a promotion place. However, Gillham confirmed that discussions have not yet concluded on terms for promotion, with minimum operating standards still to be agreed. The thorny issue of whether a promoted club will have to purchase a P-share, allowing them to participate in the Premiership's financial benefits and governance, has also not been decided. Ealing Trailfinders did not meet the minimum standards for promotion this season despite winning the Championship, and Gillham refused to speculate on the chances of a club from the Champ going up next year. However he insisted: 'We will do everything to be at the table and to make sure that there's proper aspiration and there's proper jeopardy. That is absolutely what we are determined to do.' Another complicating factor is that Rugby Football Union chief executive, Bill Sweeney, recently warned that promotion and relegation 'does not work', while Premiership clubs are angling for a ringfenced league based on franchises. But Conor O'Shea, who sits on the Tier 2 board as well as being the RFU executive director of performance rugby, said that 'grown-up conversations' would take place to ensure the dream of promotion remained a possibility. 'As it stands, at the end of next season there will be a promotion/relegation playoff based on minimum standards,' said O'Shea. 'We know that only Doncaster met them this year. The discussions are, how do we improve that? How do you make it accessible without breaking clubs?' 'There is a heck of a lot of work to do,' he added. 'Our focus is the step change we want to make in the Champ. It's already a great competition, but we want all the standards across the board to grow.' Sign up to The Breakdown The latest rugby union news and analysis, plus all the week's action reviewed after newsletter promotion Organisers are yet to announce a title sponsor. However with the bottom club being relegated, and the 13th placed club facing a relegation playoff against the National League One runner-up, the hope is that more matches will matter, leading to greater interest and bigger crowds to raise revenue. As part of England Rugby's strategy to attract new audiences, the launch video is voiced by the rugby influencer and YouTuber Max Brown. 'This is where we raise the bar,' Brown says as pounding music plays. 'Where standards are set. Where mettle is tested. Where stars rise. And where hype is realised. We build players who refuse to back down and clubs that demand respect. Communities fuelled by passion. Rivalries played out on a national stage. 'We live for the good of the game. Pushing it further. Driving English Rugby forwards. Match by match, moment by moment. This is the ultimate test. Welcome to the proving ground. This is Champ Rugby.'
