Welfare and accessibility are at the heart of Game On Global, a groundbreaking programme of optional community law variations launched by World Rugby and national member unions today.
- Modified contact, weight-banded matches and lowered tackle height at the heart of new community law variations to further advance accessibility and welfare
- Law variations include flexibility in number of players, game duration, pitch size, ball size, as well as variations to scrums, lineouts and kicking rules
- Promoting global consistency at the community level of the game, the menu of 10 law variants can be implemented by national unions from January 2022
- The introduction of Game On Global follows World Rugby’s recently launched participation plan to accelerate sustainable rugby involvement
- Implementation of the law variations will be optional and available in part or in whole for National Unions to determine.
- Central monitoring, and research will be undertaken evaluate impact
Promoting global consistency in the law variations open to unions at the community level of the game, a menu of 10 law variants are now available to all unions. From January 2022 the Game On principles can be utilised by all World Rugby member unions at their discretion:
Implementation of the law variations will be centrally monitored, and a global research project will provide an evaluation of the impacts in terms of injury-prevention and overall participation impact.
They were developed by the Community Laws Flexibility Working Group* which was set up in November 2020, following a World Rugby survey in relation to law trials that received more than 1,800 respondents, reflecting World Rugby’s mission to engage with the rugby family.
EDITORS PICKS:
- Billy Vunipola has played his last game for England
- Footage of brutal knockout punch on Alun Wyn Jones
- Eben Etzebeth will be forced to step down from rugby
- Fans Have Voted For England’s All-Time Greatest XV
- Alfie Barbeary confirms position change after talks with Jones
Five small changes that would make rugby immediately better
We’re all slaves to the juggernaut it’s become, but there are still plenty of ways to make International rugby even better.
1. Scrap anthem singers
They’re good, fantastic in fact. However, whenever just fans and players sing an anthem on their own it feels a lot more epic. Listen to this example of Wales singing their anthem as evidence enough…