Rugby’s biggest nations set to take hardline stance against rebel Rugby 360 competition

As Rugby Australia and other national unions threaten bans from Test matches for players who sign with R360, the breakaway competition has already set up structures for tournaments over the next three years across the globe.

They have offered contracts to players that stipulate they’ll be paid a gross amount.

Some of these players are not only being offered triple their salary, but can also pocket far more because of a clause in the paperwork that allows them to be taxed in their domicile – or place of residence.

The offers are not “tax free”, but essentially can be with the right strategy.

Due to Australia’s 45 per cent tax rate for those earning more than $190,000 per year, and the United Arab Emirates’ policy of no tax, players are seriously giving thought to relocating to Dubai to collect the kind of money no other professional league could offer.

They will be paid in US dollars.

Players are also considering setting up shell companies in tax haven nations and having their entire salaries transferred to those companies, tax free, and then withdrawing from those accounts as needed.

All teams will be registered to the United Arab Emirates Rugby Federation.

R360 will shake the foundations of rugby union and league, with organisers confident that by year three, they will boast the best players on the planet, before considering a range of strategies for 2029 and beyond.

Code Sports understands some of the biggest names in the game, including All Blacks captain Ardie Savea, British & Irish Lions captain Maro Itoje, and All Blacks superstar Richie Mo’unga are close to signing with R360.

Ten Wallabies also have offers on the table, but now must weigh up the financial benefit against bans from Test rugby.

R360 has already filled their quota of 200 male players for the inaugural season, but are waiting to see the official response from national unions that may lead to some withdrawals, while they have significant cash reserves for who they deem to be A-list stars who did not want to commit until there was hard evidence it would proceed.

The substantial funding American and European private equity firms allowed R360 organisers to send official letters and contracts on Wednesday evening, solidifying a competition that many had dismissed as a pie-in-the-sky idea with no firm financial modelling.

The first R360 season will launch on October 2, 2026 with six men’s and four women’s teams, with franchises to be located in Dubai, London, Boston, Miami, Tokyo, Cape Town, Lisbon and Madrid.

It will expand in 2027 to 12 events, with eight men’s teams, from April-September, before the World Cup in Australia – after which most of the world’s best players are off contract.

In 2028, there will be 16 events held from April-September.

All players will be released for Test duty if tournaments clash with internationals, pending the response from their unions and World Rugby.

R360 has already signed a major broadcasting deal with YouTube and NFL legend Payton Manning’s production company Omaha Productions.

They will separately negotiate free-to-air broadcast deals in each country.

Player agents have also been asked to sign enticing offers with R360 that will see their cut paid directly by the organisation, so it doesn’t come out of their clients’ salary, and also paid in US dollars.

Code Sports is aware of several low to mid-tier Australian Super Rugby players weighing up offers.

But they’ve been put on notice: they can forget all about representing their country ever again, including at future World Cups, and possibly also the Olympic Games.

Anyone who takes the money on offer will do so knowing they are effectively forfeiting their chance of playing in Bledisloe Cups, or Test matches at the sport’s most hallowed stadiums, including Twickenham, Stade de France, Eden Park and Ellis Park.

They might also be surrendering a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to go for gold in sevens at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 or the Brisbane Games in 2032.

That’s the blunt warning from informed sources who have told this masthead that anyone who takes the big bucks on offer won’t get to have their cake and eat it because there will almost certainly be a price to pay.

And that price will be a one-way ticket exiting the international game at the same time global rugby is going gangbusters and Australians are in the thick of it.

It’s not just Australia looking at black-listing any deserters. Other leading rugby nations, including New Zealand and England, are expected to adopt the same hard line approach after a high-powered powwow in London last week where R360 was discussed at length.

Other informed insiders suspect R360 is linked to a sustained Middle East push to win the hosting rights to the 2035 Rugby World Cup, one of the few major sports events apart from the Olympics, that has yet to be held in the Arabian Gulf.

Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE are planning a joint bid to host the global showpiece in 2035, but ultimately need World Rugby’s seal of approval.