Premiership Rugby Union : Through the Antitrust Looking Glass

The relationship between competition law and sport is an uneasy one, but one that seems to be evolving, particularly in respect of professional football. The same however, cannot be said for professional rugby union. This is particularly true in England where the governing body, the Rugby Football Union, appear able to implement anti-competitive practices with relative impunity, or at least, significant disinterest from the competition authorities. This paper seeks to consider those practices through a competition law lens and in doing so, highlight just how far professional rugby union in England has yet to travel down the competition law rabbit hole