IRB Warming To Global Season ?

World rugby leaders are warming to the concept of a global season, New Zealand Rugby Union chief executive Chris Moller

He told the New Zealand Press Association from Dublin that the
International Rugby Board had the issue high on the agenda for its
meeting
there over the next six days.

New Zealand, Australia and South Africa have been largely united
over
recent years in their desire for a global season where the windows
for
provincial competitions, tests and tours coincide around the world.
“What we’re now getting is a dialogue on this,” Moller
said.

“We’re very encouraged, as are a number of other nations,
that there is a
strong willingness to look at this issue and see whether there’s
something
that can be improved in the best interests of rugby for both the
northern and
southern hemisphere.”

The southern hemisphere wants visits from northern hemisphere
unions moved
from June to August.
“Doing that would create many more options for us in terms of
the size and
format of Super rugby.”

A global season would free up space for a return to international
tours, or
even a two-yearly Nine-Nations championship.
That concept, first mooted last year by former Australian Rugby
Union boss
John O’Neill, would involve the teams from the Six-Nations and
Tri-Nations
forming a larger tournament comprising three pools of three.

AFP – 2004.