The Int'l Rugby Board announced on Saturday that "it had suspended all direct financial support to the Fiji Rugby Union with immediate effect because of concerns over the administration and governance of the Union," according to the AFP.
The IRB said in a statement the suspension will hold "until the Union adopts key financial reporting, administration and governance reforms." The IRB said it had committed "STG1.1 million ($2.05M) in direct funding to the FRU in 2013 and significant additional financial assistance to participate in international tournaments in 2013" (AFP, 1/12). REUTERS' Amlan Chakraborty reported the FRU "blamed its previous management on Sunday for the administrative mess that prompted the game's global governing body to suspend all direct financial support to the pacific island nation." The FRU said that "they were not to blame for the imbroglio." The FRU said, "All these issues were inherited by this current FRU board and the board expects to clear up all these issues by end of May 2014" (REUTERS, 1/12).
