First Rugby World Club Cup to be held in 2028

According to European Professional Club Rugby, there will be a “unanimous” agreement between the relevant leagues and unions when the first Rugby World Club Cup will take place in 2028.

16 teams will compete in the competition every four years, with the rest coming from Super Rugby and Japan, with the only exception of eight of whom qualified through the Investec Champions Cup.

Prior to the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup finals, EPCR chairman Dominic McKay confirmed that the plans, which have been discussed for “two or three years,” have been finalized in Cardiff.

Teams from England, France, Ireland, Wales, Scotland, South Africa, and Italy are currently a part of the 1995 Champions Cup.

The second-tier Challenge Cup and the World Club Cup will continue to compete, with McKay stating that the World Club Cup’s goal is to “elevate them even higher” and adding that “ambitious plans” for the already established European competitions will be made public in the coming weeks.

The Investec Champions Cup is the world’s largest club competition, according to McKay, who said, “we’re going to continue to protect that, nurture it, and develop it even more.”

With our friends in the south [southern hemisphere], we want to create this World Club Cup proposition in 2028 and 2032.