The Rebel League Rugby 360 and an announcement that brings temporary relief to World Rugby and the Unions

The leaders of Rugby 360the new professional league promoted by Mike Tindall that promised to revolutionize the sport starting in 2026, suffered an unexpected delay, as the organizers announced in a statement: “The board of directors of R360 and its investors (…) have determined that a full launch in 2028 would offer more favorable market conditions, greater commercial security and a much more favorable environment for players and fans“.

Originally announced for the end of 2026, this “Super League” has been postponed for two seasons. In this way, its launch is postponed until after the next 2027 World Cup in Australia. “The decision to postpone our launch until 2028 is strategic, taking into account the calendar. A premature launch would not allow us to meet the standards we have set for R360 or achieve the long-term commercial impact that this sport deserves.“he emphasized Mike Tindall, former 2003 World Cup champion and member of the board of directors.

As a reminder, R360 is a proposed new rugby competition, based on a system similar to Formula 1. Eight matches were planned in the largest stadiums in the world. With the aim of bringing together the best players in the world, The project suffered a setback after several Unions announced that they would ban players from their national teams from participating.

“Following the threat of being banned from representing their countries or being banned from the NRL, only a handful of players globally withdrew from the project. During the same period, R360 added a dozen international players to its roster“. While the organization denies that enthusiasm has waned following these announcements, the project will not launch before 2028.