England's preparations for hosting the Rugby World Cup have been "rocked by the sudden resignation" of England 2015 Rugby World Cup CEO Debbie Jevans, according to Alex Lowe of the LONDON TIMES. Jevans, who withdrew from an engagement on Friday "citing illness, has announced her decision to leave England Rugby 2015 with immediate effect" because of "personal reasons." Rugby Football Union CFO Stephen Brown "will take over the responsibility for delivering the tournament," which kicks off on Sept. 18, as the new managing director of ER2015. Jevans: "Everything is in place to ensure that this is the best Rugby World Cup ever,
and I am confident my team will deliver an exceptional tournament" (LONDON TIMES, 3/27). In London, Owen Gibson reported Jevans, who was named the "most influential woman in sport by the
Guardian last year," leaves with "most of the hard work done in terms of
preparing for the tournament" and 1.9 million of around 2.3 million tickets sold. Jevans will reportedly "remain on the Football
League board and as a vice chair of grassroots funding body Sport
England." Jevans gave a round of interviews following the "breathless climax to the Six Nations and in anticipation of a new batch of tickets going on sale for some of the biggest matches but gave no clues that she was thinking of stepping down" (GUARDIAN, 3/27).
BROWN TAKES REINS: In London, Ben Rumsby reported Brown is "no stranger to being thrown in at the deep end." He was appointed acting CEO of the RFU after Martyn Thomas quit in '11 "following the civil war at the governing body." Brown had "only joined the RFU in June that year" from the U.K. operation of global healthcare company Abbott, but he was "entrusted to steady the ship prior to Ian Ritchie's arrival." He will be "expected to perform in a similar role between now and the end of the World Cup" (TELEGRAPH, 3/27). Also in London, Gavin Mairs reported Jevans' decision was met with a "mix of shock and intrigue." Sources suggested there "may have been some tension between some quarters of the RFU about who was getting credit for the success of the delivery of the tournament to date," but there reportedly had been "no inkling of her departure during an upbeat ER2015 board meeting last week." Her departure also comes amid "some rumblings in the RFU council about both the delivery of the trophy tour" and fears about the impact that the legacy of hosting the tournament will have on participant numbers, "but neither of those could have had any impact on Friday's decision." Her resignation ended an "extraordinary week" that also included Ritchie's "critical assessment" of England's Six Nations campaign, which he described on Tuesday as "unacceptable" (TELEGRAPH, 3/27).
BAD ATTITUDES: In London, Stephen Jones wrote Jevans "severed her connection" to the World Cup after "growing to hate" the attitudes of some of the rugby people around her, according to one of her closest allies. The source said that Jevans was "hurt and upset." The source added, "She just loves rugby, but not some of the people in it." That is "believed to be" a reference to senior RFU officials, who "are believed to be unhappy at the high profile she carved out" (LONDON TIMES, 3/29).
