It?s over?

[COYW15]

https://twitter.com/alexmlowe/status/1659227935914557441?s=46&t=uqL3_JPW8PntNGwES-NjpA

Breaking - Wasps have had their Championship licence revoked and demoted to the bottom of the English rugby league pyramid

[Neils]

No surprise.

[Covguy]

Confirmed by RFU.  That?s it then game over, also no way rugby creditors will now be paid.

[Neils]

From Mail -

Wasps' licence to play in the Championship next season has been revoked, it has been confirmed.

The move comes after little progress was made in paying creditors and their recruitment plans going forward following a turbulent time off the field.

A statement read: 'The Rugby Football Union (RFU) has withdrawn the licence for Wasps to continue to play in the league structure. This means that Wasps will not be able to play in the Championship next season.

'In order to be sure that Wasps were in a position to play in the Championship, the RFU set a deadline for the club to meet the commitments it had made when the licence was first approved and recommit to participating in the Championship in 2023/24.

'These included evidencing payment to Rugby Creditors and putting in place suitable governance structures including a majority independent Board and process for managing risk. The RFU was also concerned about the lack of progress engaging coaching staff and players.

'The club stated that it could not meet these commitments, recommit to participating in the Championship in 2023/24 or engage staff of players until further finance was secured.'

Full story to follow.

[Neils]

Wasps demoted to bottom of English rugby's pyramid

Wasps have had their licence withdrawn by Rugby Football Union and cannot compete in the Championship
By Charles Richardson, Rugby Reporter 18 May 2023 ? 5:27pm

Wasps have been demoted to the bottom of English rugby's league pyramid and will not compete in the Championship next season after the Rugby Football Union withdrew the club's licence on Thursday.

The RFU had set Wasps a deadline to meet the commitments the club had made when the licence was first approved in February when the governing body confirmed that the two-time European champions would be participating in the Championship in 2023/24.

Wasps, however, have stated that unless further finance was secured it could not meet these commitments and, therefore, could not recommit to participating in the Championship in 2023/24. The West Midlands club, which played out of Coventry's Ricoh Arena after moving from High Wycombe in 2014, will now have to restart from the bottom of the league pyramid.

"The RFU had worked with the club?s new owners to give the club the best chance of continuing in the league structure and recognises the effort the new owners have put in to try to make this happen," read a statement from English rugby's governing body. "However, the RFU Board decided that in order to give certainty to other clubs, the licence to continue to play is withdrawn."

Telegraph Sport understands that preparations are now under way to plan for a 12-team Championship next season, with 11 sides in the Gallagher Premiership and 23 competing in the Premiership Rugby Cup. The RFU has set London Irish a deadline of May 30 to prove it is on a sound financial footing - either with a takeover or otherwise - or the Exiles will be relegated from English rugby's top flight.

Earlier this month, Wasps owner Chris Holland had made a loan to new Worcester Warriors owners Atlas to help secure a lease to play Championship rugby at Sixways from next season onwards. With Thursday's news from the RFU, that plan is seemingly now dead in the water.

Holland is also the current owner of the club's state-of-the-art training ground in Henley-in-Arden, which is currently occupied by Birmingham City. The long-term future of that training facility remains to be seen, however.

RFU chief executive, Bill Sweeney, said: ?This is not the outcome anyone in rugby wanted and all those involved with the club will be deeply disappointed.  We have worked with the new owners for the past six months to try to ensure that a robust plan could be put in place for the club to continue to play in the Championship while players and staff could receive monies owed to them.   ?The RFU is working closely in partnership with Premiership Rugby and the Rugby Players Association to ensure players are supported.  We are also working together at pace to ensure the game emerges from this challenging time on a strong and sound financial footing.?

[Bloke in North Dorset]

Oh well, back to just being a rugby fan.

A big thanks to all those who tried, your efforts are appreciated.

[MarleyWasp]

I've been sent this from Scrivs to be shared and is also online here (https://www.wasps.co.uk/club-announcement):

WASPS STATEMENT

Our exit from the Rugby Football Union

It has been an all-consuming 7 months since the 17th of October 2022. Our first task was to save and secure the brand, the IP, and the legend ? and in that we have been successful. Since then, we have been constantly involved in the resurrection of the club with the intention of competing in the 2023 RFU Championship.

Operating in a void between regulatory authorities that were managed by strict governance requirements, and a championship that had not been engaged in our membership and who, perhaps understandably, offered some resentment to our inclusion, has been challenging.

Our recovery to date has been managed by a very small team who have been dealing with the operational and financial issues and requirements of the RFU and PRL since our engagement in November 2022 when we were successful in the approval process to enter the RFU Championship in September 2023. That approval was subject to initial and then continuing requirements around financing, ground, rugby creditors and the demanding governance provisions. During our approval process, and since, we have continually reminded the RFU that we would not repeat the mistakes of the past by allowing a single point of failure, and that we would not commit to any employment or contract unless we were sure that
we would be able to fund the expenditure for the season.

We have embarked on a wide ranging, and professional search, for suitable funding. From the outset we had interest from various sources who engaged in their own due
diligence, some in depth to the extent that they had direct contact with the governing bodies. Whilst the investment interest continues, we regret to say that the current state of rugby finances, the lack of clarity on the league structure and concerns over promotion has caused the investor group to remain silent and fatigued.

On two occasions we asked the RFU for an extension of time to secure funding and to satisfy the rugby creditors. Our requests were refused on both occasions. Whilst we understand the need for regulatory conformity and the administration of the league, the only reason we needed that extension was for the RFU to establish a clear vision and direction of travel so that our investor pool were able to see equitable funding for the Championship and a clear pathway to promotion.

Indeed, the recent revelations around the possible ring fencing of the premiership for 3 to 5 years to protect it has further weakened our investment position. There is the suggestion that a route for promotion could exist with a play-off between the bottom of the premiership playing the winner of the Championship. Given there is a deficit of ?4m+ in funding between the Premiership and the Championship, then the only route of promotion includes the very problem of excessive funding that perpetuates the business system failure.

We had made progress in certain areas though. We have a kit deal, significant sponsorship from a global brand, and a choice of grounds to play at. We have 232 players and 37 coaches available to select a team from. We have also identified strong local authority support for our own stadium, and whilst some have criticised us for even considering a new stadium option, their rush to judgement ignores the stark reality that rugby at the higher levels needs supplementary income to survive without owner funding - which is the single point of failure we are determined to avoid. Rugby alone will not provide a sustainable business, until it is properly governed and financially supported.

The arrangements and direction regarding the rugby creditors has also been troublesome. We were handed the responsibility of others to identify, validate, audit, and settle the rugby creditor claims inherited from the previous administration. We established a system to manage this process and acknowledged our moral obligations to complete it.

Following our regrettable exit from the Championship, our understanding is that the rugby creditors will now revert back to the administrators for the claims to be pursued against Wasps Holdings Limited (In Administration). We will work with the administrators on this.

So, what will happen now?

The journey continues with utter determination and commitment to ensure that WASPS continues its 156-year history in a sustainable rugby environment that shares the vision
and values that the new club aspires to. We are extremely grateful for the loyal support and concern from our global fan base.

Our silence has been deliberate and necessary. Firstly, we had nothing definitive to say that couldn?t have changed the following day, and often did, and secondly, we only recovered our social media accounts and rebuilt a new web site in the first week of May. You will hear more from us soon.

[NellyWellyWaspy]

I said this would happen only this morning on the WW forum.

Holland will sell the Henley site, likely to Birmingham FC, or to a developer (or maybe develop it for housing himself).

Between them, Holland & Atlas will sort out that loan (as it falls due in a couple days), Sixways will be left to rot until the planning people allow it to be redeveloped.

Professional Wasps is no more.

It is the unintended consequence of the rugby creditors rule. It guarantees rugby creditors will not be paid and the club will die with no prospect of return.

Who is next for the RFU/PRL train wreck? Irish have but a few days ... Newcastle Then Tigers?? How long before those Bozos that are in charge wake up?

[NellyWellyWaspy]

On reflection, Wasps could still play from Henley. They could apply to join a local league, then play a side that is too strong for those teams. The RFU has discretion to move teams up if they are too strong for their league. Locally, in Henley, it is not 10 leagues down. There isn't anything down there. It is much higher up.

Maybe they could see who of those hundreds of players, and coaches wants to give it a go. It would be a lot cheaper, for sure.

[Chunky24]

Wasps statement on twitter

https://twitter.com/WaspsRugby/status/1659238199883857928?t=QZdxJkjj3aANSv2ZeoOVog&s=19

[Bloke in North Dorset]

Looks like there?s some bitterness at the way they?ve been treated by the RFU who put them in a catch 22 position: expecting Wasps to get funding commitments whilst they dithered over deciding the overall direction of rugby and promotion in to the PRL.

[RogerE]

Well we were all hoping it wouldn't happen, while knowing it probably would.

Thanks to those who tried.

My immediate feelings are summed up in the quote from Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy "So long and thanks for all the fish"

[Neils]

Looks like there?s some bitterness at the way they?ve been treated by the RFU who put them in a catch 22 position: expecting Wasps to get funding commitments whilst they dithered over deciding the overall direction of rugby and promotion in to the PRL.

Not a surprise but perhaps should have been anticipated.

[NellyWellyWaspy]

I wonder if they will start over at Henley? It would be way cheaper. I mean, a huge amount cheaper. If they got a team together, mainly recruited from 18+ years PRL Academy players who got dumped by various teams and have no other team, get a decent coaching setup. It wouldn't cost too much.

Get moving on the stadium anyway. The RFU might let them join maybe Counties 3 Midlands West (South), one up from the absolute bottom. The bottom league is mainly second teams, and the RFU has allowed new teams to jump up like that. The league I mentioned is one team down anyway (or it was this year), with only 11 teams.

5 years of winning would put them two years away from the Championship. I have a feeling an 8 team PRL will be locked until at least then, and maybe forever.

Financing it gets easier that way.

I wonder if Atlas will stump up the loan Holland gave them? They have a few days. Or will he have to foreclose on Sixways, and sell it for development?

[Shugs]

Yep. The end. A sad day. Great effort from those that put their time in for nothing but it was always a stretch. We won?t be the last, the game is in ruins and I have zero desire to watch it in the future.