sport news Sixty more former players join legal fight against World Rugby, the RFU and WRU ... trends now
View
comments
Rugby bosses in both codes have been warned their games are not currently safe for players after 60 more ex-union professionals joined an ongoing legal case against the sport’s authorities over head injuries.
On Wednesday, Rylands Garth – the lawyers acting on behalf of the claimants – confirmed the expansion.
The names of the 60 additional former union players were not revealed.
Rylands say a total 328 ex-union stars are now suing World Rugby, the Rugby Football Union (RFU) and the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) for failing to take reasonable action to protect them from permanent injuries they say were caused by repetitive concussive and sub-concussive blows.
‘We do not believe elite level rugby in either code (union or league) is safe in its current form,’ the claimants said in a statement.
England’s 2003 World Cup winner Steve Thompson and former Wales forward Alix Popham were among the first to join the legal action
Former England hooker Mark Regan is also involved in the concussion lawsuit against World Rugby, the RFU and the WRU
‘Without reform to the game, many more players will end up suffering from significant neurological impairment.’
Rugby’s concussion crisis began in 2020 when England’s 2003 World Cup winner Steve Thompson and former Wales forward Alix Popham were among the first to join the legal action.
Since then, the impact of neurological diseases on players in retirement has been one of the sport’s biggest talking points.
The legal claimants are seeking damages but also change in the sport they played to protect the players of today.
Like rugby union and league, football is also having to face up to the impact of head injuries on its players.
This week, the Manchester United defender and France World Cup winner Raphael Varane admitted he had suffered concussions and had
