Archive August 19, 2025

The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) will propose reducing the number of professional sides in Wales from four to two.

Welsh rugby’s governing body has produced a radical plan which includes its “optimal solution” for transforming the struggling game.

The WRU is expected to announce its preferred proposals this week which will include two organisations each having a men’s and women’s side.

There will then be a six-week consultation period where the Union will present its favoured option to stakeholders before a final decision on the plans, which is expected to be made by the end of October.

Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets are currently the four professional men’s sides in Wales, but the WRU is suggesting the number of teams is halved.

The news comes despite the fact that Ospreys have plans to move into a revamped stadium at St Helen’s in Swansea for the 2026-27 season, while Scarlets have recently unveiled new investors.

New director of rugby Dave Reddin, chief executive Abi Tierney and chair Richard Collier-Keywood have been involved in the plan.

It remains unclear whether the two future sides being proposed will be new entities or existing teams.

The WRU has, though, proposed that there will be two organisations which will each have a men’s and women’s team.

There could be 50 players in each men’s squad with a budget of £7.8m each, while the women’s squads will have 40 players apiece.

The WRU says there will be significantly elevated funding for each men’s squad, which would facilitate a radically different profile of talent and support.

The Union says the two squads would feature predominantly Welsh-qualified players, while there would be a rethink on non-Welsh qualified players.

The WRU would fund the two men’s and two women’s teams, all of which would be operated under licences, with the governing body giving any owners or investors responsibility for all commercial operations.

Phase one would involve the move of the two sides, men’s and women’s, operating on two sites.

There will also be a transition to contracting of players and staff within central national academies.

Phase two would involve the clubs moving to training at one site which will be known as a national campus.

This will be home to 400 people, including men’s and women’s national staff, professional and clubs staff and national academies. The men’s and women’s academies will be centralised.

The proposals include improving the standard of the Super Rygbi Cymru competition, which is the current level below the men’s fully professional game.

The WRU said in July the current system was failing and unsustainable and that it was looking at a more radical strategy.

This came after Wales’ men’s side had lost a record-breaking 18 international matches in a row and slipped to 12th in the world rankings, while the four regions have struggled in the United Rugby Championship (URC) and European competitions.

The WRU and regions had been trying to get a new deal over the line after months of negotiation.

A glimmer of hope was offered in February when the new Professional Rugby Agreement (PRA) was agreed in principle, with all parties ready to sign in early April.

The process was derailed when Cardiff went into temporary administration later that month and were taken over by the WRU which, in the process, absorbed £9m of club debts.

Scarlets and Ospreys wanted clarity from the WRU but said “key issues” were not resolved regarding concerns about favouritism towards Cardiff.

Dragons and Cardiff put pen to paper, while Scarlets and Ospreys did not sign the PRA in May.

The WRU responded by saying it did not intend to continue equally funding four professional teams in the men’s game, paving the way for the potential of a reduction in sides.

The number of professional sides in Wales was most recently reduced in 2004, when the Celtic Warriors ceased to exist after only one year of competing.

Louis Rees-Zammit returned to rugby union because he realised he was “wasting his talent” in the National Football League (NFL).

But he says he has no regrets quitting rugby, claiming he is better for experiencing the “brutal” world of American football alongside Super Bowl stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce.

The Wales and British and Irish Lions wing shocked his sport when, on the eve of the 2024 Six Nations, he announced his decision to try and make it in the NFL.

Having slowly begun to realise his American dream was not going to become a reality during 18 months of trying, the 24-year-old is back having signed a season-long deal at Bristol Bears.

Despite winning contracts with Kansas City Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars, Rees-Zammit did not play a competitive NFL game.

“I gave it my best shot but it’s very difficult to get into the NFL if you haven’t gone through the college system, you just don’t get the same opportunities as those boys.

“It makes sense from a coach’s point of view, because those boys have been playing that sport for so long and it’s hard to coach someone up on the sport they’ve never played before.

Far from seeing it as a failed experiment, Rees-Zammit says it was a valuable experience, adding: “Just to be involved in a locker room that was completely different to rugby, next to global figures like Mahomes and Kelce, I learned from everything they did day to day.

“But I’m real about it – it probably wasn’t for me in the end.

“There’s no regrets. I’m very happy that I made the decision because would I regret it if I never did it? That’s the biggest regret.

“I’ve gone out, did it, played a year, and made a decision to come back and really express my game again.

What happened was the inevitable. Even during his sabbatical, the free-scoring winger remained one of the sport’s biggest names.

There was no shortage of offers, with Bristol’s style of play and short distance to his Cardiff home obvious draws.

Rees-Zammit’s short-term deal, he says, was the right move as he looks to show he has lost little of the skill or the speed he had before bulking up in the NFL.

But it has also prompted speculation over a move to the proposed breakaway rebel circuit R360 in a year’s time.

The 32-cap international said he had only seen the media reports and is focused on regaining match fitness in time to start the new English Premiership season with Bristol against Leicester on 28 September – with a Wales return also in his sights – and then “see what opportunities arise”.

But he did admit that “globally we want rugby to be as big as possible, and if we can play it on a global stage that’s going to be huge”.

Rees-Zammit is someone the game’s organisers know they need. He has more Instagram followers than the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) and his social media influencer girlfriend Drew Knotts will join him back in Cardiff.

That includes an out-of-sorts Wales, with the national side having played 18 Tests since he left and losing all bar one.

There was no consideration of a move to a Welsh region, but he has held talks with new Wales head coach Steve Tandy and his staff as he eyes an autumn international return.

But Rees-Zammit says performing for Bristol is a priority, adding he even missed tackling during his time on the offence of the Chiefs and the Jaguars.

He will not have played truly competitive sport in 20 months by the time the season starts, but said he has been reacquainting himself with a rugby ball over the past two months and did not feel “rusty”.

“The skill isn’t really the issue, it’s just about being match fit,” he said. “There’s a lot more conditioning in rugby – in NFL it’s more anaerobic fitness, being able to do repeated sprints, not so much long-distance stuff because the [time of the] ball in play here is very high.”

As is his speed, claiming he still clocked 23mph despite putting on an extra 10kg.

The Hundred women’s competition, Trent Rockets

Trent Rockets 111-7 (100 balls): Sciver-Brunt 34 (26); Filer 3-23

Manchester Originals 113-0 (82 balls): Bryce 61 (45), Mooney 47 (37); Stonehouse 0-10

Manchester Originals won by 10 wickets

Manchester Originals completed only the third 10-wicket victory in the history of The Hundred women’s competition as they defeated Trent Rockets at Trent Bridge.

Captain Beth Mooney hit 47 from 37 deliveries and Kathryn Bryce 61 from 45 as Originals chased their target of 112 with 18 balls to spare.

England bowlers Sophie Ecclestone and Lauren Filer starred in the Rockets innings, taking 2-12 and 3-23 respectively as Originals restricted the home side to 111-7.

Ecclestone picked up two stumpings, dismissing opener Nat Wraith and her England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt, who top-scored for Rockets with 34.

Meanwhile Filer had Rockets skipper Ash Gardner caught by Ecclestone at long-on and then returned to remove Alana King and Ellie Threkeld in the final five balls of the innings.

The top five for Rockets all made starts but failed to push on, and the home side struggled to hit boundaries after Sciver-Brunt’s dismissal, failing to breach the ropes after the 74th ball of the innings.

The visiting openers had no such issues, with Mooney striking five fours and one six and Bryce eight fours as their record opening partnership for Originals set up a comprehensive victory.

Beth Mooney is the top-ranked batter in international T20 cricket and she showed her class at Trent Bridge, easing her side to victory alongside Kathryn Bryce.

The 34-year-old had been dismissed for single-figure scores in her past two matches, but returned to form against the Rockets.

She now has 6,124 runs in the three major women’s franchise leagues around the world, passing compatriot Ellyse Perry’s tally of 6,082 in this innings.

Meanwhile Scotland international Bryce starred with ball and bat, bowling Bryony Smith and having Heather Graham caught in the deep as she finished with figures of 2-19.

The 27-year-old then reached her half-century off 36 balls – her first in The Hundred – and finished the game by hitting Graham through square for four.

We’ve got two double-headers for you to enjoy on Wednesday, with Welsh Fire hosting Southern Brave and London Spirit hosting Northern Superchargers.

The games in Cardiff are at 11:30 and 15:00 BST, while the matches at Lord’s take place at 15:00 and 18:30.