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Clubs should act on Lewis's Heineken Cup plea 10 views 0 Images
10 September 2013 by Englandfan
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The future of the Heineken Cup remains under threat and English clubs must heed Wales rugby chief Roger Lewis's heartfelt plea to step up to the plate and get involved in negotiations to save the competition in its current format.
This season's tournament, for which Toulon are favourites in the Paddy Power rugby odds, could well be the last unless a deal is sorted out between England and France, who are together pushing for significant structural changes, and Italy, Wales, Scotland and Ireland, who have turned down new proposals.
The French and English sides have called for the number of teams taking part to be cut from 24 to 20 and also want the prize money divided differently moving forward, but the plans have been met with stiff opposition.
It appears to be coming to a head and the Anglo-French alliance has already served notice that they could quit the continent's top club competition when the current agreement - the Paris Accord - expires following the final at the Millennium Stadium next May.
It was hoped a resolution would have been found before now but, with the domestic campaigns now underway, it looks like the key stakeholders are no nearer to sorting out their differences. Lewis believes the problem and the dispute has been caused by the English clubs and he has made it clear they should get round the table and negotiate a solution for a competition that, he says, "is too good to lose".
He said: "There has to be a European Cup next season. It’s too good to lose. I was in Dublin last Monday. I met with the chief executive (Derek McGrath) of ERC and I was in London last Wednesday, where I met with some of the broadcasters involved in the European Cup.
"We have got to make sure it happens and we have got to say to the English clubs that you have got to step up and come to the table, and negotiate properly to come up with a solution because this issue, this problem has been created by England and England has got to come and sort it."
So far, all previous talks have failed to reach a satisfying conclusion for the different nations with the sticking point being that, under the French and English plans, some countries could see themselves without a participant in the Heineken Cup betting markets.
The Anglo-French alliance want the top six finishers from the Aviva Premiership, French Top 14 and RaboDirect Pro12 qualifying but Wales, Ireland, Scotland and Italy are against the plans.
The English and French clubs are currently standing firm and refusing to bow to pressure from the other countries and a worrying impasse appears to have been reached.
Some sort of compromise must be reached, however, because - like Lewis says - the prestigious Heineken Cup is a competition that must be preserved.
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