Premiership clubs agree salary cap overhaul after Lord Myners review
- Published
2019 Premiership champions Saracens were docked 35 points and fined £5.3m for breaching the salary cap in each of the past three seasons
A ground-breaking overhaul of the Premiership salary cap has been unanimously approved by clubs.
Last month, Lord Myners made 52 official recommendations as part of his comprehensive report into the cap.
All measures will be applied, including titles being stripped for serious offences and more accountability for clubs, players and agents.
The review comes in the aftermath of champions Saracens' relegation from the Premiership for repeated cap breaches.
However, changing the level of the cap, currently £7m, and scrapping the two marquee player allowances were not part of the official recommendations.
While former government minister Myners did call for the marquee rule - which allows two players to be paid an unlimited amount outside the cap - to be reviewed by the clubs, he did not go as far as to recommend that it should be removed.
His recommendations for the English top flight also included:
Greater sanctions for clubs in breach, including relegations, suspension, stripping of titles, and return of prize money.
Greater accountability for players, and sanctions for players in breach of their obligations.
Greater accountability for agents, and sanctions for agents in breach of their obligations.
Greater accountability for club officials, and the introduction of a "fit and proper" test for club owners.
Greater transparency and clearer regulations, with clearer definitions of what constitutes salary.
Greater power and support for the salary cap manager.
"I am immensely grateful to Lord Myners for his thorough, diligent and robust approach to conducting this review," said Premiership Rugby chief executive Darren Childs.
"It's a credit to our clubs that they have acted so quickly to support these recommendations and take the Premiership Rugby salary cap into a new era. We want to create the gold standard for delivering sporting integrity, financial viability and competitive balance.
"The next stage is for us to consult with our clubs, the Rugby Football Union and Rugby Players' Association and to enshrine these new regulations for the start of the 2020-21 season, which will be created for the long-term benefit of our sport."
Former Harlequins and Saracens chief executive Mark Evans told BBC Radio 5 Live's Rugby Union Weekly podcast that the Myners report was "undoubtedly" a step in the right direction, but warned a further governance overhaul at Premiership Rugby is needed.
"I don't think our league is very well structured. I am a big fan of the salary cap, but the salary cap can't do it on its own," Evans said.
"It needs about 10 or 12 other things to happen if we are to build the Premiership into a sustainable league that can grow over time."