Premiership Rugby should consider a radical overhaul of its player transfer system by introducing football-style auctions and American college drafts, according to former England Sevens captain Ollie Phillips.
The Case for Transfer Market Revolution
While football's transfer window generates massive excitement with £100 million deals and deadline day drama, rugby union lacks comparable spectacle. Phillips argues that Premiership Rugby, which returns this weekend, is missing a significant engagement opportunity by maintaining its current conservative approach to player movements.
Most rugby players simply leave at contract end with minimal transfer fees changing hands, creating little of the speculation and excitement that captivates football fans annually. This contrasts sharply with franchise cricket, which has successfully implemented draft systems and public auctions where club owners bid openly for global talent.
Proposed System: Marquee Players and University Drafts
Phillips suggests a dual approach to revitalising rugby's transfer market. First, he proposes that marquee players should become guns for hire on one-year deals, with their wages remaining outside salary cap calculations. This would allow clubs to trial elite talent without long-term financial risk if a £1 million investment proves unsuccessful.
Such a system could see the league's best player joining the previous season's worst team, potentially galvanising performance and increasing competition across the Premiership.
Secondly, Phillips advocates for implementing a US-style draft system for top university talent. This would prevent clubs from automatically acquiring local players and create exciting scenarios where, for example, Sale Sharks could poach a Loughborough University player originally destined for Northampton Saints, or Gloucester might secure a University of Exeter prospect who would typically join the Chiefs.
Learning from Other Sports
The success of similar systems in other sports provides compelling evidence for rugby to follow suit. Cricket's Hundred has generated significant excitement through player movements, with the Lord's franchise London Spirit recently poaching a chief analyst from their Oval rivals.
Next year, The Hundred will introduce an auction system after operating with drafts, mirroring successful models in Indian and South African leagues where bidding wars for players create off-field drama that amplifies team profiles.
Phillips envisions a future where All Blacks, Wallabies or Pumas could enter an auction system, committing to whichever club secures their services. While acknowledging it's a wild idea, he believes it could positively impact the sport year-round and deserves serious consideration from league chiefs.
The former England Sevens captain, who now runs Optimist Performance, concludes that such changes would drive engagement not just through television coverage but across social media and digital platforms, with fans passionately debating player merits and transfer moves.
