Extra drama added at both ends as RFU unveil new-look Champ Rugby

The RFU have unveiled the new format and structure of English rugby’s second division next season, branded ‘Champ Rugby’.

The competition will see a return of relegation to National League 1 and potential promotion to the Gallagher Premiership, which Tier 2 board chair Simon Gillham said will create “aspiration and jeopardy”.

The league will be expanded to 14 teams next season, with National League 1 winners Richmond joining the competition alongside Worcester Warriors, who will mark their return to professional rugby.

Champ Rugby will follow a similar format to France’s Pro D2, with Tier 2 board member and RFU council member Terry Burwell saying they have taken a “direct lead from our French colleagues”.

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Like the Pro D2, the top six sides in Champ Rugby will compete in a promotion play-off at the end of the season, with first and second place earning automatic home semi-final places. Where the two leagues will differ is that the winner of the Champ Rugby play-off is crowned league winner and will face the side at the bottom of the Premiership in a two-legged home and away play-off to determine whether they can earn promotion, subject to meeting the minimum standards criteria. That differs from France, where the winner of the Pro D2 play-off will earn automatic promotion to the Top 14 and the runner-up will enter a play-off with the second-from-bottom in France’s top tier.

The relegation battle will also follow a similar structure to France, with minor differences. The side that finishes at the basement of Champ Rugby will automatically be relegated to National League 1, with the winner of England’s third tier being promoted. The sides that finish 12th and 13th will then face each other in a single-leg play-off, with the loser playing an ‘Access Final’ against the National League 1 play-off winner to resolve who will play in Champ Rugby the following season. That means two teams could potentially be promoted from the third division, subject to the teams meeting Champ Rugby minimum operating standards.

Burwell said at the unveiling of the new competition that play-offs are a “fundamental part of sport’s evolution,” with Champ Rugby drawing influence from a variety of leagues and sports to deliver a product that ensures the “whole season has significant meaning and value.” Gillham added that he can “guarantee there will be an increase in bums on seats.”

As for the sponsorship of the new competition, Gillham said they are in the process of looking at potential sponsors. Funding for the league will come from a combination of “sponsorship, gates and discussions with the RFU,” he added.

With perennial concerns over the future of the Premiership, with revolutionary ideas such as a franchise model being mooted, there are lingering queries as to how a promoted side would fit into that picture, not to mention the stake that the Premiership teams have in the league.

RFU executive director of performance rugby and Tier 2 board member Conor O’Shea admitted that there is a “heck of a lot of work to do” to resolve these issues, but emphatically asserted that “as it stands, at the end of next season there will be a promotion and relegation play-off.” He added that such a play-off would have actually been in place this season, but only fifth-placed Doncaster Knights currently meet the minimum standards.

O’Shea said that there will be a “real focus on English players” in Champ Rugby, trying “to push players of national interest through the league.” As a result, 18 players in a matchday squad must be English-qualified, with an allowance of six players per matchday squad dual-registered with a Premiership club, though there is no limit to how many can be in a wider squad.

With four of the five youngest players in the recently-named British and Irish Lions squad being English, O’Shea believes “we have a generational England team in the making”, when also considering the U20s’ triumph at the World Rugby U20 Championship last year.

The youngest Lion in the 2025 squad, 20-year-old Henry Pollock, who was only playing in the Championship last year with Bedford Blues, is the poster boy of the next generation coming through, but O’Shea said “Henry is the first cab off the rank of three to four generational players.” The priority of the league, therefore, “is about us creating the best system possible,” he said, adding “with the talent we have, our job is to create the structure for them to fulfil their talent.”

“This is going to be a very special time if we get it right,” the director of performance rugby said.

In a statement following the introduction of Champ Rugby, Gillham said: “We are excited to announce the structure of Champ Rugby, which will bring a highly competitive and gripping conclusion to the season, providing both aspiration and jeopardy.

“We have worked closely with the clubs and stakeholders on developing a compelling league format that rewards ambition and plays a key role in growing the sport, supporting both player and club development.

“Building up English rugby’s second-tier competition is critical to the transformation of the elite game in this country, and we are at the start of that journey. Delivering high-quality event day experiences, gripping on-field drama at the conclusion of the season, and more compelling digital and visual content will support our transformation aims for the league.

“We have developed a really strong brand identity which we believe showcases everything the league represents and the impact we know it will have on the sport, our players, communities and fans. It will appeal to both existing supporters of the league as well as being exciting and compelling for a new and younger audience, as well as, importantly, potential sponsors and investors in the league.

“We look forward to seeing the new brand roll-out across both central Champ Rugby channels as well as those of the clubs as preparation for the 2025-26 season starts in earnest.”