World Rugby Vice-Chair Agustín Pichot said that he thinks int'l rugby is under threat.GETTY IMAGES
World Rugby Vice-Chair Agustín Pichot "warned that the sport has 12 months to save itself from disintegrating if it does not manage to find agreement on a global calendar," according to Mick Cleary of the London TELEGRAPH. It "had been thought that the announcement of a unified schedule, one that would serve the potentially competing interests" of club and test rugby, "was imminent" following an agreement in San Francisco in January last year. Those "optimistic noises have proved to be hot air." Instead, Pichot "sent a warning shot across the bows of all concerned" by revealing that the "powers-that-be" would have to sit down again in Sydney on Sept. 24 to "rework the whole grid structure," remarking that they were only 40% of the way in terms of "finding an agreed solution." He threatened to "walk away if he cannot help to navigate a way through the mess," saying, "I do not want to be an accomplice to rugby’s ruin." Pichot was asked if he thinks the future of the int'l game is "under threat." He said, "I think it is. If you ask me as a businessman, the business side of it is not working. If you ask me as to the playing side, it’s not working. The bottom lines are not there" (TELEGRAPH, 9/12). In London, Samuel Lovett reported Pichot "also expressed his concerns for the game's players," who he fears are "at risk of being neglected amid the cumbersome politicking of the sport's various unions." As an example, he pointed to Premiership Rugby, "which is currently in negotiations" to secure a new multi-million pound backing for the league, "having recently turned down an offer" of £275M ($361M) from CVC for majority control. Pichot "feels let down by the league's announcement that future domestic seasons will extend into June." He said, "It's all a trade-off and who pays for that? The players. I felt that Premier Rugby didn't honor what we said in the San Francisco meeting" (INDEPENDENT, 9/13).
