English clubs seeking entry must apply rather than progress through a promotion play-off, as organisers provisionally target a 12-team rugby union top flight in 2029–30.
In a joint statement reported on 28 October, Prem Rugby, which runs England’s top-flight rugby union league, and the Rugby Football Union (RFU), England’s governing body, said they are focusing expansion resources on English clubs. Their provisional target is to grow from 10 teams to 12 in 2029–30, subject to readiness checks and financial and competitive viability.
The league was reduced to 10 clubs after Wasps, Worcester and London Irish folded during the 2022–23 season.
BBC Sport said the Professional Rugby Board, which oversees Wales’s professional game, was told on 28 October of Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) plans to explore English club rugby. Senior English club-rugby sources confirmed the interest but said negotiations were not taking place.
The RFU Council approved a switch from traditional promotion and relegation to an application-based system from 2026–27. Previously, the winner of the second-tier Champ could earn a play-off against the bottom Prem club if it met minimum standards. Expansion applicants must complete at least one Champ season.
Applicants face checks on playing standards, financial sustainability, ownership, governance, investment capacity, facilities and operating capability. Their location’s potential to expand the league’s reach, contribution to women’s rugby and community impact also count.
After clubs submit formal expressions of interest and tenders, the planned Expansion Review Group will assess league readiness, investor appetite and applicants’ preparedness. The group will recommend decisions to the Men’s Professional Rugby Board, which retains final authority over expansion.
The 23 October reform announcement also provides for assessing existing Prem clubs on rugby performance, attendance and fan engagement. Persistent underperformance could trigger demotion if a stronger, viable replacement exists.
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In that announcement, Prem Rugby and the RFU said the old structure had failed to deliver financial stability, investor confidence or wider benefits. They said defined entry standards would give aspiring clubs a clearer route and help existing and future owners plan investment, while managed growth would widen the league’s reach and fanbase.
BBC Sport said a Prem “P-share”, effectively an up-front entry cost, was understood to be valued at £20 million. The share brings a percentage of central income and voting rights, alongside a requirement to fund a Premiership Women’s Rugby programme.
Under the reform’s standards from 2030, clubs must either operate a Premiership Women’s Rugby team or fund an agreed regional women’s development plan with meaningful minimum investment.
Ospreys, Cardiff, Scarlets and Dragons currently play in the United Rugby Championship (URC). The WRU says it is committed to providing four teams through the end of 2027–28 and will work with the league’s other shareholders on future Welsh representation.
It also keeps competition opportunities under review. Any Welsh entry into the Prem would require RFU approval because it would turn the league into a cross-border competition.
In the women’s game, it is pitching for Brython Thunder and Gwalia Lightning to join Premiership Women’s Rugby. That is a bid for admission, while the reported interest in English men’s club rugby remains exploratory.
The WRU says its previously reported losses show that four professional regions are no longer sustainable. It forecasts a loss next year similar to its latest deficit. Chief financial officer Gavin Marshall said the union could afford less for professional rugby than its current contribution.
| Measure | Amount | Period or status |
|---|---|---|
| Annual loss | £7.2 million | Previous financial year |
| Annual loss | £18 million | Latest financial year |
| Professional-rugby contribution | £26 million | Current contribution |
| Affordable professional-rugby spending | £20 million | Limit stated by Gavin Marshall |
Under the WRU’s current proposal to reduce the professional game to three teams by 2028, licences would cover the capital, east and west. Cardiff, owned by the WRU, and independently backed Dragons would retain places; Ospreys and Scarlets would compete for the western licence. New WRU chair Lyndon Faulkner has promised to review the proposal.
The WRU says it will determine the men’s game’s future operating model by the end of this season. A rugby summit has been called for December 2026, with a final decision on which club would lose its place expected in summer 2027.
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