Bill Beaumont will take over in July as World Rugby chairman, but on the day his unopposed election was announced the incumbent Bernard Lapasset’s expansion policy resulted in Georgia, Romania and the US being given seats on the governing body’s top table, diluting the power of the major nations.
The move enhances the prospects of Georgia and Romania joining the Six Nations, a move that the Rugby Football Union – looking for a new chairman to replace the departing Beaumont – has opposed, along with the other five members. Lapasset’s parting gift as chairman makes it harder to keep the door closed.
Beaumont and Lapasset traded compliments at the Dublin media call to announce the former England captain’s new role, but when Lapasset secured a second term at Beaumont’s expense in 2011, winning a vote that had to be postponed because of rising tensions in the two camps, he wasted no time in activating his mandate for change based on giving second-tier nations a voice and widening the game’s base.
The landscape has changed for Beaumont who as well as having to deal with the demands for recognition from emerging countries like Georgia and Romania has to preside over the increasingly fractious debate over the international calendar from 2020. Part of the reason for the current impasse in the attempts to help reduce the load on top players is the refusal of the Six Nations committee to consider shifting the championship from its February start.
“The sport is in excellent health and over the next four years there will be many more opportunities to grow the game,” Beaumont said. “When it comes to the international calendar debate, it is about reaching compromises. You might get a situation like in a business deal, where you actually shake hands on something you’re both slightly disappointed with and would like to get a bit more. That could be the case with the calendar.”
Beaumont’s vice-chairman will be the former Argentina scrum-half Agustín Pichot, the first time someone from outside the eight foundation unions has held the position. Argentina, along with Italy, will see their votes on the council increase from one to two, in line with the eight, while Georgia, Romania and the United States will join Canada, Japan and the six regional unions in having one vote, vastly increasing their standing in the game. They will, for example, have a say in who hosts World Cups.
“This shows the model and pathway are in place for other unions who aspire to have a seat on the council,” Lapasset said. “We encourage them all to take inspiration from Georgia, Romania and the USA to review their governance and strive to reach the required criteria. World Rugby is committed to the sustainable growth of the sport set against a backdrop of transparency, integrity and strong governance.”
The foundation unions no longer have an in-built majority on the council, with 16 of the 33 votes (the chairman and vice-chairman, however, have one reach). Pichot vowed to continue Lapasset’s work in encouraging second-tier nations to improve the way they operate so they are able to gain a seat and voting rights, and he is likely to complement the more diplomatic Beaumont by being opinionated and direct.
Beaumont, meanwhile, said he did not rule out the Six Nations expanding in the future to include Georgia and Romania, adding that he did not see promotion and relegation as an option. That opinion is shared by the president of Rugby Europe, Octavian Morariu, a former Romania international.
“Enlargement is a more practical option than promotion and relegation which would reduce stability,” Morariu said. “We must be careful not to damage the Six Nations, which is a commercial company, and talks are taking place to include Georgia and Romania in the Under-20 Six Nations, something that may happen in three years. The priority for us now is for Georgia and Romania to have more fixtures against tier one nations, which is where the global calendar debate comes in. They must be given fixtures if they are to progress.”
Meanwhile World Rugby has changed the seeding system for the 2019 World Cup after last year’s tournament drew a pool that included England, Australia and Wales. There will still be five bands of seeds in each group based on the world rankings, but the cut-off point will be May next year rather than this December giving European teams the chance to improve their standings in the Six Nations as opposed to November Tests against the major southern hemisphere countries.
