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After months of speculation World Rugby has confirmed that a new law book will be unveiled on January 1, 2018. The landmark reveal concludes nearly two years of development and will see the new law book drastically reduced in size. While the laws themselves will see no changes, simplification in the wording of the laws and the removal of redundancies and potentially contradictory text has seen the content reduced by an incredible 42%.
In an official release World Rugby Chairman Bill Beaumont says the change is significant.
“As our game continues to grow around the world, we continue to strive to make the sport as accessible to all. The laws can be difficult to understand for new participants and fans and the new law book goes a long way towards simplifying it and making it easier to understand for players, coaches, referees and the viewing public.
“This has been a truly collaborative effort with every union given the opportunity to contribute. I’d like to thank them and the working group for their full commitment to an extensive and important process. I believe what they have produced will make a big difference to the game as we seek to make rugby more accessible to all.”
LAW SIMPLIFICATION GROUP
Chris Cuthbertson (Chairman RFU Laws Committee)
James Fitzgerald (World Rugby Media Manager and former international referee)
Mark Harrington (World Rugby Head of Technical Services and club head coach)
Tappe Henning (Scottish Rugby Union Referee Manager and former international referee)
Rod Hill (New Zealand Rugby Referee Manager)
Adam Pearson (web designer/illustrator)
Dr. Ross Tucker (sports scientist)
