The WRU have begun making payments of £23.5m to the four Welsh regions for the coming season. The first instalment went out from the governing body last month.
However, that is some £5m short of the amount the pro teams maintain they need to cover costs. As such, talks are ongoing about bridging that gap, amid attempts to formulate a longer-term financial package, via a rolling three-year agreement.
The payment of £23.5m for the 2022-23 season is the figure that was originally announced back in June 2021 after the Professional Rugby Board (PRB) reached agreement on funding to the regional game through to June 2023.
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Speaking to regional contacts, some view that as a temporary funding level as the new financial year kicks in, amid ongoing negotiations over future payments. The WRU have pointed to the fact that the £23.5m figure was publicly disclosed some two years ago and, as such, has been known about since then.
The key question now is what the next long-term settlement will look like. Talks over a future finance package have been going on for some months now, amid a series of lengthy meetings.
It’s understood a number of issues have been addressed as part of the discussions. Those include the level of benefactor involvement moving forward, the question of governance of the game and the regions potentially having greater access to Wales squad players during international periods if they are not involved in Tests. Essentially, we are talking about a broad package relating to the management of the professional game.
The payment formula to the regions is laid out in the Professional Rugby Agreement. Once the ring-fenced £10.5m funding to the community game and staff costs have been covered out of incoming revenue, what’s left goes to the PRB for distribution to the regions. That distribution is weighted dependent on varying factors, notably how many players from Wayne Pivac’s elite 38 each region has on its books.
In terms of income, there has been much debate over what is happening with the £51m the WRU is receiving from the Six Nations’ commercial deal with CVC. The WRU had originally said the plan was to primarily spend that on capital projects, but it’s believed a portion of that amount may be tied into the talks over the future finance package for the pro game.
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