WRU faces resignation calls after £18m annual loss

Swansea council leader Rob Stewart has called for Welsh Rugby Union chief executive Abi Tierney and the board to resign after the governing body reported an £18m annual loss. According to BBC Sport, the WRU is also forecasting a similar deficit for the following year, while former Wales international Alex Cuthbert has questioned its leadership and communication.

The latest loss compares with £7.2m in the previous financial year. Rising operating expenses, weaker ticket sales and lower spending by supporters were identified as reasons for the deterioration. Chief financial officer Gavin Marshall described the result as deeply disappointing and said the board would accept accountability. He also acknowledged that the organisation could not continue on its current financial course.

The figures have intensified disagreement over the future size of professional rugby in Wales. The WRU says the losses demonstrate that maintaining four professional clubs is financially unsustainable, and it is seeking to reduce the number of regions to three from 2028. Stewart disputed that conclusion, arguing that Wales has both sufficient playing resources and enough income flowing into the union to support four teams if the game is managed better.

Speaking to Radio Wales Breakfast, Stewart accused the WRU of mismanagement. He pointed to empty seats at the national stadium, supporters staying away and leading players moving to England. He also criticised what he described as more than 18 months of uncertainty and repeated changes in the union's plans, saying Welsh rugby needed a clearer direction.

Cuthbert raised separate concerns on the Scrum V Podcast about the relationship between the national team's poor results and ticket demand. He argued that the financial performance warranted scrutiny of those running the organisation, and questioned how effectively the WRU had explained its decisions to the public. His criticism extended beyond the annual accounts to the longer-term organisation of the professional game.

On the regional proposals, Cuthbert said the WRU should have stated a clear intention to move to three sides when it introduced its One Wales strategy. He acknowledged that such an announcement would have faced opposition, but argued that support might have developed over time. Instead, he criticised a planning process that he said had shifted between four teams, two and then three.