Biarritz relegated into third division
The national rugby league (LNR), the body that oversees professional rugby in France, announced Friday that Biarritz, Bourgoin and Narbonne had been relegated into Federale 1.
The three clubs have a 10-day window in which to appeal the rulings which came after enquiries by a financial watchdog co-run by the LNR and the French rugby federation.
Biarritz, five-time French champions – lastly in 2006, pre-empted the LNR statement by saying they "knew of this problem for a long time".
The club "is actively working to regularise the situation in the knowledge that a large part of the solution comes from a legal problem rather than a financial one we do not want to discuss for the moment".
Biarritz, the club of former France fullback and now federation vice-president Serge Blanco, were relegated into the Pro D2 in 2014 and have since struggled financially.
Two-time French champions Narbonne have been owned by an Australian consortium including Bob Dwyer and Rocky Elsom since 2012. Despite making the Pro D2 finals in 2014, the club has seen a major fall-out between its amateur and professional sectors, and has failed to boost its small budget.
For Bourgoin, the ruling was the second time the club, European Challenge Cup winners in 1997, had been forcibly relegated because of financial difficulties following a similar demotion in 2012.
Agence France-Presse
