WRU outlines timeline for plan to cut team in west
The Welsh Rugby Union has detailed its plan to reduce professional teams from four to three by 2028, with Cardiff and Dragons set for licences in the capital and east, while Ospreys and Scarlets compete for the west spot, with a merger also possible.
The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) has outlined its plan to reduce the number of professional teams from four to three by 2028. Under the plan, from the 2028-29 season, Wales will have one team in the capital, one in the east, and one in the west.
Cardiff, owned by the WRU, and Dragons, an independently-backed business, are set to be given licences for the capital and east respectively. This leaves Swansea-based Ospreys and Llanelli-based Scarlets to compete for the remaining west spot, with a merger also a practical, if controversial, possibility.
The WRU stated that the process to decide the framework for the final decision will begin in December and finish before the end of the 2026-27 season. After Wales' Nations Championship matches in November, the WRU plans to bring together the leadership of all professional teams and other stakeholders to discuss the finances of the regions' proposals and assess the interests of the quartet in taking up the new licences.
"This will allow an orderly implementation and avoid prolonged uncertainty for clubs, players, supporters, investors and sponsors," said Marianne Okland, chair of Welsh rugby's Professional Rugby Board. "Assuming that Cardiff Rugby and Dragons RFC want to sign up to the proposed licensing terms, there is now certainty that they will be offered the capital and east licences respectively."
In April, the WRU confirmed the cut to three teams would not happen until 2028 after a deal with Ospreys owners Y11 Sport & Media to buy Cardiff fell through. Scarlets and Ospreys joined their eastern rivals in signing a Professional Rugby Agreement (PRA) this summer and are now poised to battle for survival, unless they can be convinced to merge, which was close in 2019.
WRU vice chair John Manders added: "We have already begun to put the support structures in place to develop the related player pathways, to create the best environments for our senior players, to provide the right financial support and to develop the facilities around them. We are making important progress which will safeguard the future of our game, concentrate resources and give our teams the best chance of achieving success at all levels."
