BBC Sport
[Source:BBC Sport]
Wales’ players have given Welsh rugby bosses a deadline of 6 February to provide clarity on what will happen next season.
That is a day before Wales begin their Six Nations campaign against England at the Allianz Stadium in Twickenham.
The Welsh Rugby Players’ Association (WRPA), the organisation that represents Wales’ players, met with the Professional Rugby Board (PRB) to “address the significant challenges currently facing the professional game in Wales”.
The meeting took place after it emerged Ospreys’ owners, Y11 Sport & Media, are the Welsh Rugby Union’s (WRU) preferred bidder to buy rivals Cardiff who went into administration in April 2025.
This comes after the WRU announced in October 2025 that it intends to cut one of the men’s professional sides, reducing numbers from four to three.
The WRPA is especially concerned about the make-up of next season and has given Welsh rugby bosses the deadline to let them know what is happening.
The players’ body warned “failure to deliver certainty by this point would inevitably require players to consider their position and next steps”.
Strike action has not been mentioned, but that was a possibility three years ago when Wales’ players threatened not to play the Six Nations fixture against England in February 2023, because of a dispute over player contracts.
The game eventually went ahead but the WRPA has shown it is as concerned now about the state of the Welsh domestic game.
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