The true impact of English government's shutdown

REACTION: Rugby Football Union Chief Executive Bill Sweeney has claimed that the newly confirmed tightened restrictions on sports events in England will massively impact on his organisation’s ability to fund the sport.

England had been hoping to accommodate a crowd of 20,000 for their October 25 match against the Barbarians, paving the way for five-figure crowds to attend the following month’s Test matches at Twickenham in the one-off year-end Nations Cup.

However, fresh government measures will now result in sports stadiums remaining closed to fans for the foreseeable future, placing increased financial pressure on sports organisations such as the RFU.

Both the RFU and Premiership Rugby issued a statement revealing the true impact of the stricter new measures.