Do the Prem Rugby semi-finals need a Welsh URC team? Sport Business Ahead of this weekend’s Prem Rugby’s semi-finals, Ollie Phillips assesses whether they could do with a hint of Wales. Picture the scene: next year’s Prem Rugby semi-finals feature the top three teams from this year – Northampton Saints, Bath Rugby and Exeter Chiefs – plus one of the Scarlets, Ospreys, Dragons or Cardiff. This would, [...]
McCall or Rowe: A Prem Rugby titan will bow out this weekend Sport Business CityAM rugby columnist Ollie Phillips discusses the last weekend of Prem Rugby fixtures, and how a major giant of the game in Tony Rowe or Mark McCall will bow out come full time. Tony Rowe, Rob Baxter, Nigel Wray and Mark McCall: the four men who have, arguably, defined English club rugby over the [...]
Champ Rugby: Bedford vs Worcester shows strength of second tier Sport Business This Sunday afternoon at Bedford Blues’ Goldington Road could be pandemonium. The home team take on Champ Rugby giants Worcester Warriors looking to be crowned winners of English rugby’s second tier. But what’s the point, when you cannot get promoted? Well it is the continued proof that the Champ is and can be competitive, where [...]
Bilbao, Amsterdam, Milan: Where should Champions Cup rugby go next? May 22, 2026 The best thing about the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup finals weekend is its location: Bilbao. It is not the first time the two premier continental fixtures have ventured to El Botxo – the San Mames Stadium hosted Leinster’s victory over Racing 92 in 2018 and Cardiff’s Challenge Cup win over Gloucester a [...]
England Red Roses are great for rugby, but are they bad for business? May 15, 2026 Should the dominant England rugby team beat France on Sunday in the final round of this year’s Women’s Six Nations they will notch up their 38th consecutive Test victory. It is an amazing feat by one of the most incredible sports teams in the world, but is it good for business? For England, yes. For [...]
In defence of Bristol Bears CEO Tom Tainton’s rugby marketing comments May 8, 2026 “At Bristol Bears, we don’t call ourselves a rugby club. We are a marketing agency that plays rugby. Yes, our players have to be competent and able to deliver on the field, but if they are not bringing any value off the field, that genuinely factors into our recruitment conversations.” Those were the words of [...]
Winning Champions Cup players should get mega cash bonuses May 1, 2026 Sometimes I think Investec Champions Cup matches with something on the line could do with even more jeopardy. Bordeaux Begles, Bath Rugby, Leinster and RC Toulon will battle it out this weekend across the Atlantic and Aviva Stadiums. But what if there was a briefcase full of cash pitchside for the winners of each of [...]
Bellingham offers hope that celebs can find Prem Rugby investible April 24, 2026 Jude Bellingham has invested into cricket and it offers hope for Prem Rugby, Ollie Phillips writes. Jude Bellingham’s £800,000 investment into Hundred franchise Birmingham Phoenix is smart money; he’s from the area, gets one per cent of a team where he will do very little heavy lifting, and diversifies his portfolio. And it got me [...]
The Yankee dabble in Prem Rugby is Dandy, but I don’t get it April 17, 2026 It is great to see that an American investor is set to take over Exeter Chiefs; it marks a new point of interest for Prem Rugby after Red Bull and Sir James Dyson from this side of the pond invested in Newcastle and Bath respectively. And we must not underestimate the power of US involvement [...]
Investec Champions Cup needs two-legged quarter-finals. Here’s why April 10, 2026 It occurred to me, while watching predominantly dominant performances from home teams in the round of 16 last weekend, that the Investec Champions Cup needs two-legged quarter-finals. It was a little depressing to watch a depleted Leicester Tigers side who had won just one match in the group phase get smashed by defending champions Bordeaux [...]
