Teams at the Rugby World Cup could be facing a major problem when it comes to preparation after an insurance wrangle between the Premiership Rugby Limited and World Rugby.
A report says that Premiership Rugby Limited will stop players from joining up with their national team squads until mid‑August.
England being the exception because of the £220m Professional Game Agreement between the Premiership Rugby Limited and the Rugby Football Union which was signed in 2016.
The major issue is insurance for injuries picked up while on international duty, with World Rugby recently raising the salary threshold of full compensation for an injured player from £225,000 to £350,000, but the Premier Rugby League don’t think it’s enough.
That could mean teams would only have their full complement of players 35 days before the opening game of the Rugby World Cup, which is on September 20th next year.
Among those who could be most affected are Scotland, Wales and Fiji who will potentially be without the likes of Leicester’s Campese Ma’afu, Newcastle Falcons trio Tevita Cavubati, Nemani Nagusa and Vereniki Goneva, while London Irish prop Manasa Saulo may be in the Premiership should they secure promotion.
There are also sizeable contingents of players from South Africa, Georgia, Russia and Italy playing in the Premiership, among others.
Southern Hemisphere teams competing in the Rugby Championship will have the advantage of having an extra official window to prepare close to the World Cup, with the Rugby Championship set to begin on July 20th.
[Source: RugbyPass]
