This month marks two years since the power brokers of the English game held court at Twickenham, sat in the kind of room where old money swills on Saturdays, and told us they were spending £264m to “reshape the rugby landscape”. The professional game partnership (PGP) between the Rugby Football Union and the Prem clubs was trumpeted as “historic” and would bring “world-leading English teams and thriving professional leagues”. Two years on and with a World Cup 12 months away, would anyone argue we are on the right path to achieving both aims?
Steve Borthwick was absent from Twickenham that day. It felt odd at the time because the most significant aspect of the PGP allows him to award 25 enhanced contracts and assume more control over the selected players. Precisely how much control is a question answered in shades of grey.
At the time, an increase at all felt significant, a win for the head coach, but with hindsight, with the clubs still financially weakened by the pandemic, the RFU could have seized far more autonomy. Instead, the union prioritised modernising the English game in collaboration with the clubs. The upshot has been a vibrant league in which try-fests are 10-a-penny, a formal end to relegation and a move towards a franchise system.
There is obvious optimism among Prem executives, most metrics point towards a burgeoning commercial product and it should be said the less flashy aspects of the PGP, such as better aligning the marketing departments, have been effective. In addition, the threat of R360 has been staved off and investment is steadily coming in. History may eventually show the RFU’s decision to align with, rather than exploit, the clubs was wise.
They rely heavily on the £3.3m a year they each receive but if the stream of investment turns into a flood, they will not to the same degree. In turn, the incentive to give greater access to their players will diminish. We are a way off that scenario yet, however, and it does little to help Borthwick plot a course towards next year’s World Cup.
Two years on and the Prem appears to be thriving but no one would describe Borthwick’s England as world-leading. The argument goes that the all-singing, all-dancing Prem is not producing battle-hardened Test players. The next question, then, is whether Borthwick is failing to take advantage of the greater control he has or whether he simply does not have enough.
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