Less than five months before the Rugby World Cup kicks off in England and Wales, "some of rugby's best players are still deciding which country to represent," according to Julian Linden of REUTERS. For many, "money, rather than national pride, could be the deciding factor." The days have "long gone when players unhesitatingly opted to play for the land where they were born and raised." Now, players can pick and choose who they want to appear for thanks to the sport's "controversial eligibility rules." The "most common loophole is through parents." Players whose parents or grandparents were born in foreign countries "can switch to those teams." The "most contentious rule, however, is the one concerning residency, which allows players to represent countries where they have lived for just three years." The critics, "and there are plenty, have called for changes to the rules, saying they tarnish the integrity" of int'l rugby and threaten to turn this year's World Cup into a "fiasco." World Rugby CEO Brett Gosper said that officials were preparing to "review the legislations." Any changes to the current rule "are still likely to face stiff opposition from rugby's richest nations, who have benefited the most from the current set-up" (REUTERS, 5/7).
