World Rugby's bumper new competition slammed for 'betraying' the game
Samoa's Lima Sopoaga has blasted World Rugby for excluding Tonga and Samoa from its new-look Nations Championship.
Former All Black turned Samoan World Cup playmaker Lima Sopoaga, has blasted World Rugby for its new-look Nations Championship saying the decision “undermines the spirit of inclusivity of rugby". The Nations Championship will be held bi-annually, starting in 2026, and will see two pools, one consisting of six teams from the north and the other of six from the south, playing in five matches in the July and November international break, before the top side from each pool meet in the final.
There will also be a second division made up of tier-two teams, such as Tonga and Samoa, with promotion and relegation commencing in 2030. The Nations Championship will contain the teams from the Six Nations (England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales) in the north and the four nations playing in 'The Rugby Championships' (Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa) in the south, along with two more sides from the south who are yet to be decided on but are expected to be Japan and Fiji.
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The World Rugby Council voted through the Nations Championship blueprint on Tuesday, with the format passing 41 to 10, with a minimum of 39 votes needed for it to go ahead. World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont said the new tournament was the “last piece of the jigsaw” and “the most significant development in the sport since the game went professional.”
“A new era is about to begin for our sport. An era that will bring certainty and opportunity for all," Beaumont said. "An era that will support the many, not the few and an era that will supercharge the development of the sport beyond its traditional and often self-imposed boundaries. All boats will rise together."
Sopoanga is dismayed by the decision to exclude Samoa and Tonga
The decision hasn't gone down well with Samoa's Sopoaga, who believes World Rugby’s decision to vote through the Nations Championship will affect the game's progress in smaller countries. "I am deeply frustrated and disappointed by the recent World Council decision to exclude smaller nations like Samoa and Tonga from the upcoming Nations Championship," Sopoaga said in a post to X, formerly known as Twitter.
"This move not only hinders our progress but undermines the spirit of inclusivity that rugby is supposed to stand for. The Nations Championship was supposed to be a beacon of hope for smaller rugby-playing nations.
"It offered us the chance to compete with some of the giants of the sport, to test out mettle, and to show the world what we are made of. We were excited about the opportunity to go toe-to-toe with teams like the All Blacks, Springboks and Wallabies, but now that dream has been shattered."
The playmaker said the exclusion of smaller nations is "a stark reminder of the power imbalances in world rugby". "This decision privileges the interest of the Six Nations and The Rugby Championship, and it's disheartening to see those interests hold more sway than the dreams and aspirations of smaller nations," he said. “It sends a discouraging message that their dreams are not as important as those of larger nations. It’s a betrayal of the very essence of rugby, which should be about respect inclusion and fair play."
Sopoaga, who recently became eligible to play for Samoa, says the nation has strived to make themselves a global name in rugby union and Tuesday's decision "felt like a slap in the face to all that hard work" and believes it hurt their chances of improving on the international stage in the future.
"This exclusion not only impacts our chances of improvement but also affects the young talents in our nations who aspire to be the next great rugby players," Sopoanga said. “We are not asking for charity.
"We are asking for an equal chance to compete to prove our worth on the field and to develop the sport in our nations. We will continue to fight for our place in the global rugby community, and we hope that one day, the world will recognise the value of giving smaller nations the opportunity to shine on the rugby field."
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