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Door still open for Rugby Championship expansion

NEWS: Incoming New Zealand Rugby chief executive Mark Robinson said the door is still open for an expanded Rugby Championship.

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The tournament would have seen two new teams join New Zealand, South Africa, Australia and Argentina as early 2022 if World Rugby’s Nations Championship had gone ahead. However, the proposal was axed.

Robinson said he is still interested in seeing the game grow even if the Nations Championship isn’t going ahead.

“We met with the Pacific Islands and the Japanese as recently as World Cup and talked about what the Rugby Championship looks like, all those things are on the table at the moment,” Robinson told Radio Sport.

“We’re absolutely committed to that. I accept the frustration and views around what happened in the past, we acknowledge this is a new world and if the game is to break into new markets, which it needs to do not only for good of game but reality of the financial viability, we’ve got to do it.

“At some stage, we’re committed to looking at the expansion of the Rugby Championship.

“The timelines around that we’re working through … there’s a growing acceptance around the world that we need to be genuine in our commitment to globalise the game.”

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Source Radio Sport & NZ Herald

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