Rugby stakeholders hope new calendar proposals improve player welfare

Rugby's stakeholders hope proposals for developing a new optimised global calendar will help improve player welfare, with a new two-division international competition set to provide more opportunities for countries to progress on the world stage.

The likes of the International Rugby Players representative body, World Rugby, the British and Irish Lions were all involved in the talks held in London this week, as well as the major international competitions including the Six Nations and the Rugby Championship.

Concerns had been raised over tackling player burnout across the global game, with more focus called for on rest and recovery periods between domestic and international commitments.

As part of the discussions by the game’s stakeholders, there will be a review of the current 'World Rugby Regulation 9’, which will "look to reflect the new calendar and address issues relating to the release of players for international matches".

It was also acknowledged "much more work is required" over decisions on the international global season structure, which are set to be taken by the World Rugby Council at its interim meeting in Paris during October.

A statement on the World Rugby website read: "The whole-sport group continue to be united in their commitment to optimising the global calendars to prioritise player welfare and accelerate global growth in content, opportunity, relevance and value by better aligning the annual domestic and international environments, also boosting player and fan experience.

"Central to the development of the men’s calendar is optimising player release for players moving between the club and international environments, overall welfare optimisation including rest periods, and a greater level of clarity around