{"id":294886,"date":"2023-10-24T20:24:50","date_gmt":"2023-10-24T20:24:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tellmysport.com\/?p=294886"},"modified":"2023-10-24T20:24:50","modified_gmt":"2023-10-24T20:24:50","slug":"world-rugby-attacked-for-scandalous-new-competition-with-nations-locked-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tellmysport.com\/rugby-league\/world-rugby-attacked-for-scandalous-new-competition-with-nations-locked-out\/","title":{"rendered":"World Rugby attacked for ‘scandalous’ new competition with nations locked out"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Former United States rugby head coach Gary Gold has blasted World Rugby for ignoring smaller nations with its new radical competition. A new international two-tier league has been drawn up with 12 teams competing in each division.<\/p>\n

Likened to football’s Nations League, the top division will feature all Six Nations teams as well as South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, Argentina, Fiji and Japan with a biennial final. But any other rugby-playing nation will have to wait until 2030 to be able to gain promotion to the top division.<\/p>\n

The so-called Tier Two nations, such as Portugal, Uruguay, United States and Georgia will therefore be highly unlikely to face off against the elite sides outside of a World Cup. Gold, who held the head coach position of the United States national team from 2018 to 2022, has not been impressed by World Rugby’s decision to delay promotion and relegation in the two-tier competition.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is utterly and totally ridiculous. It is not progressive at all,\u201d Gold told City A.M. \u201cWhen the accusations come towards the powers that be of them being an old boys\u2019 club trying to look after themselves, it is difficult not to believe that is the case.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt seems like the boys\u2019 club is looking after the boys. I cannot see another explanation to this. It is just nonsense. \u201cThere are teams like Romania, the United States, Canada, Spain and Uruguay who have big ambitions and want to grow. And they\u2019re not going to grow, this is the bottom line.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlaying Fiji, Tonga and Canada [for Tier Two] nations is all fair and well, you will get better, but you\u2019re not putting yourself in a position to significantly improve. \u201cIt is scandalous. I read something where Nick Easter [former England No8] said rugby was one of the worst-run sports in the world and I am struggling to disagree with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

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