PREM Rugby’s £34m black hole — is financial sustainability in sight?

For the third year in a row, the Gallagher PREM has made a significant combined loss — and with the 23/24 season’s £34m black hole marking a 40% increase on the season prior, domestic rugby union’s ongoing financial troubles make for bleak reading.

A year on from our last review, we wanted to take a fresh look at the state of the game’s finances to understand what (if any) progress has been made and which challenges persist. 

Here, Will Hardwick from our rugby sector team presents the data and asks: is English domestic rugby union a loss-making industry?

The data: Rugby Finance Report 2025

Leonard Curtis released the second edition of its Rugby Finance Report in November 2025. This shows that the 23/24 season was the third consecutive season in which no PREM club made a profit, with the combined loss of £34m marking a 40% increase on the £24.2m loss from the season prior and six of the ten clubs making a loss of at least £3m each. So, despite the investment deal that has been in place from private equity firm CVC, the profitability of rugby union (at least domestically) seems to be in question. 

Moreover, Northampton Saints, Gloucester, Leicester Tigers and Saracens are the only clubs to currently be balance sheet solvent. This means that the remaining six teams continue to be propped up by their owners. Meanwhile, all ten clubs are in significant debt. Exeter posted the least debt of £15.1m, while Bristol Bears had the highest figure of £67.3m. 

Total revenue across the league fell from £191.9m to £182.2m during the 23/24 season. However, since clubs benefitted from the final payment of the league’s agreement with CVC in the 22/23 season, this goes someway to explaining the drop. 

Matchday & commercial revenue

Clubs did report growth in both matchday and commercial revenue, with Harlequins seeing a commercial income growth of £1.6m. Slight increases in sponsorship and the diversification of revenue streams — with clubs using their facilities to host conferences, weddings, graduation ceremonies and even concerts — have helped clubs to grow their commercial outreach.

Attendances at matches across the clubs also grew in the 23/24 season and clubs reported that increases in ticket sales and crowds boosted the numbers, with Bath’s matchday income growing by £2.2m. 

Financial sustainability

A particular concern was raised by Leonard Curtis about Sale Sharks, who reported a wage-to-revenue ratio of 122% for 23/24 — an increase of 30% from the season before. Four other clubs also had ratios of over 70%. With the sport only increasing revenue at a marginal rate, Leonard Curtis has again raised concerns as to clubs’ tendency to spend much of their revenue on ever-increasing wage costs. 

A worrying trend is for the 24/25 season, PREM Rugby’s salary cap returns to is pre-Covid level of £6.4m, which may encourage clubs to return to spending money on staffing costs at those levels rather than retain financial discipline. This was ultimately one of the causes that led to the demise of London Irish, Worcester Warriors and Wasps. If current trends persist and clubs continue to overspend, there’s a realistic possibility that further clubs may vanish — weakening the competition and threatening the league’s domestic and international appeal.

Rebrand, social media & broadcasting

However, the picture isn’t all doom and gloom. This is the first year of the rebrand to ‘PREM Rugby’, which was designed to engage better with audiences by referring to the league in its colloquial term and therefore boost its appeal. 

Indeed, last year’s final was watched by 973,000 people — the highest ever figure in Premiership Rugby history — and social engagement soared by 24% on the previous year.

When combined with the announcement of a new five-year tv deal with TNT Sports until the 30/31 season (worth £40m a year — a 21.2% increase on the previous deal with TNT sports), this makes pleasant reading for rugby fans.

Newcastle: the Red Bull takeover

Red Bull’s takeover of Newcastle marks the first top‑flight English rugby acquisition in years and signals rare confidence in the PREM’s potential. The move has secured Newcastle’s short‑term finances and brings major planned investments in facilities, pathways and fan experience. If delivered well, this could become a model for how strong ownership can revive a PREM club. However, long‑term success will depend on sustainable growth, particularly with the raft of signings that Newcastle are making.  

Women’s rugby

The women’s game is also facing a crucial moment in its growth. England’s triumph in the 2025 World Cup Final was watched by a peak audience of 5.8m viewers, though the sport will need to continue to build and leverage the women’s game and the momentum it has built or risk falling foul of the same mistakes made on the back of the men’s World Cup win in 2003. 

Similar to the exponential growth and exposure of women’s football following the Lionesses’ repeated successes over the past decade, the sport must seek to help the women’s game become more visible and less dependent on the men’s game, particularly due to its financially volatile nature. 

Ilona Maher — who’s undisputedly the most high-profile individual globally in either the women’s or men’s game — has brought increased attention to the sport and her three-month spell at Bristol Bears increased the profile of the PWR. This illustrated that casual sports fans can be drawn to certain stars and not necessarily to specific teams. Ellie Kildunne, a lynchpin of the England team and the runner-up in BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2025, could be the figurehead that the RFU and PWR build their brands around. 

The women’s game also has a competitive imbalance both domestically and internationally, with certain teams dominating the landscape. This can create disengagement with fans due to a predictability to matches and tournaments. Closing the gap through bridging the funding under a centralised model might be the answer to this problem, rather than having eight clubs tied to their male counterparts that are under financial distress. 

Welsh Rugby — what’s occurring?

Welsh rugby is in a similarly deep financial hole. The WRU recently identified a £29m funding gap required across the four regions to deliver its One Wales strategy over the next five years. Financial instability has already pushed Cardiff Rugby into administration, with the WRU stepping in to purchase its business and assets to keep it afloat, while a takeover from the owners of the Ospreys has been mooted, creating fears of the regions merging. 

These fears haven’t been dispelled by sources confirming the WRU’s controversial plan to cut the number of professional men’s teams from four to three by 2028.

Threat of R360

R360 is a proposed breakaway global rugby league, designed to bring together many of the world’s top players and create a commercially driven, fully international competition. While the proposal has stalled, its aim was to pull elite talent into a new structure that ran outside of the traditional World Rugby and domestic competition calendars. The idea emerged as a radical alternative to the existing system, responding to longstanding concerns about player welfare, financial instability and the fragmented global rugby calendar. 

The NRL in Australia responded strongly by suggesting that it would ban any defecting players from its competition for ten years. However, while the RFU would be able to dictate selection for the national team based on where a player is contracted, UK courts have repeatedly held that sports bodies can’t impose restrictions that go beyond what’s necessary to protect the integrity of their competitions.

What can clubs do to prevent breakaway leagues?

• Set eligibility rules to play in PREM Rugby.
• Set national team selection criteria.
• Implement contractual restrictions for players.

What can’t clubs do?

• Issue lifetime bans.
• Blacklist R360 participants.
• Agree collectively to not re-sign R360 players back to PREM Rugby.
• Create any rules to punish those looking to join R360.
• Use regulatory dominance to protect their own competition.

Franchise model — will it work?

English rugby has approved a landmark structural overhaul that permanently abolishes automatic promotion and relegation between the Premiership and Championship. Instead, from the 26/27 season, the Premiership will adopt a criteria‑based expansion and demotion model, functioning similarly to a franchise system. This reshapes the top flight into a ring‑fenced league of ten clubs, with plans to expand to 12 by 2029/30, provided that applicant clubs meet strict standards on financial stability, infrastructure, governance, investor backing and support for the women’s game. 

An Expansion Review Group (ERG) will be set up to examine the readiness of potential applicants before the 27/28 season. The proposal has already created interest from Knighthead Capital who own Birmingham City Football Club and have a 49% stake in the Birmingham Phoenix cricket franchise. It also opens the door for clubs like Wasps and London Irish to re-form and reappear in the league. 

Ringfencing rugby’s top flight has often proven to be an incredibly unpopular idea with fans and is arguably against British sporting tradition as it creates less jeopardy throughout a season. However, many PREM clubs are less interested in jeopardy and more interested in financial survival. Bill Sweeney, the RFU Chair, stated: "This reform is about safeguarding the future — creating a model that is ambitious, sustainable and capable of supporting the whole rugby community, from the grassroots to the international stage." 

English rugby: at a crossroads

English rugby continues to be at a crossroads with an unclear future. Leonard Curtis’ report calls for bold, systemic reform, rigorous financial oversight and a unified approach between clubs, the league and the RFU. Despite gains in fan engagement and some commercial progress, the sport’s financial model remains fundamentally unsustainable, with clubs increasingly reliant on benefactors and mounting debt. The sport still appears to be reactive, rather than proactive and R360 may have spooked domestic leagues around the world.

Rugby must continue to embrace different revenue streams, especially through modern, multi-use facilities. The sport’s ability to get through this systemic breakdown in its financial model will hinge on its ability to innovate and rebuild its marketability. The PREM has decided that it’s time for a change and has already begun this process. Decision-makers within the domestic game believe that this shift puts the professional game on a path to prosperity and stability. The success of the decision to ringfence the PREM and move to a franchise model, however, will remain to be seen in the coming years.

Meanwhile, the women’s game is poised for significant growth after recent momentum. Yet without stronger financial foundations, it risks falling short of its potential.

Talk to us

The financial pressures facing clubs across the PREM and wider rugby landscape underline how important it is to have the right support when navigating instability, debt and structural change. Our sports law and insolvency & restructuring teams work with clubs, owners and governing bodies to stabilise finances and manage risk.

If your organisation is facing financial strain or considering its long‑term direction, get in touch today by calling 0333 004 4488, emailing hello@brabners.com or completing our contact form below.