Americas Rugby News Rugby news from across the Americas!
The President of the Unión de Rugby del Uruguay (URU) Pablo Ferrari has published a letter on the union’s website raising concerns about the proposed World League.
Rugby’s global governing body is seeking to make friendlies both more interesting and more profitable. This has led the organization to press for a World League. The 12-team competition is slated to start in 2020 though has run into serious problems before it has been confirmed.
Heading the move is Agustín Pichot who seeks to have pushing for promotion / relegation with there big two divisions of 12. Reports out of New Zealand indicate that this is not going to happen and that the Pacific Islands will not be involved.
The exclusion of Fiji resulted in outrage on social media and even a move to boycott RWC 2019. Fiji are ranked 9th in the world today yet, according to the leak, they will not play in the World League. The 15th ranked Italy are, nonetheless, secured of a place. Both the USA and Japan are also set to compete and also be added to the Rugby Championship.
The chorus of anger about the Pacific Islands being left out in the cold has been followed by many questioning Georgia’s exclusion and lack of an opportunity to play in the Six Nations.
Now Uruguay has joined in. The South American country is seeking clarification from World Rugby, noting a concern to the World League, deeming it to be closed, protecting those involved. The URU has requested answers from World Rugby, specifically for the organization to produce a clear statement of the official plans.
The URU wants a calendar which is legitimate for not just the 12 teams but for everyone. It went on to also note that the priority of World Rugby must be to establish an attractive calendar for all and that this needs to be the challenge for the immediate future.
