The rugby morning headlines as World Cup-style tournament discussed for 2021 with matches played in Wales

The breaking rugby stories and news on Wednesday, May 27.

Here are your rugby morning headlines for Wednesday, May 27.

Another 'Rugby World Cup' proposed next year

An unofficial Rugby World Cup is being proposed for 2021, with claims it could raise up to £250 million for financially hit rugby.

A little under two two years after the Springboks lifted the Webb Ellis Trophy with their emphatic final win over Eddie Jones' England, another global tournament to be staged in the UK and Ireland has been mooted.

Cardiff's Principality Stadium would be one of the venues used. According to reports other games would be staged at Twickenham, Murrayfield and in Dublin.

However, the matches would force the Lions tour of South Africa to be postponed.

The Daily Telegraph reports that the idea is on the table and has been put forward by Francis Baron, a former chief executive of the England Rugby Union.

The suggestion has already been put before England bosses and World Rugby.

Staged over six weeks in June and July, 16 invited teams would play 31 matches under a plan that has apparently been given the title of "Coronavirus Cup of World Rugby".

Baron told the Telegraph : "I have talked to one or two senior colleagues and they think the country would get right behind it, as they did with the tournament in England in 2015.

“I think the four Home Unions would support it because a number of big matches would be held in each of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

"The key will be winning the support of the southern hemisphere unions but with everyone facing horrendous financial challenges, this is a bold and ambitious plan to raise large amounts of new cash from which they will be major beneficiaries.

“The 2015 World Cup in England generated net profits for the game of around £400million. I believe this proposed special event could generate a net profit for distribution to unions of £200-250m. This would be in addition to the £80m World Rugby support funding package already in place for the global game.”

All profits from the proposed 2021 tournament would be spread around the participating unions, and a support fund started.

"The RFU should take a leadership position and propose to other major unions and World Rugby that a special one-off tournament be held," said Baron.

"Its key selling point is that all the money raised would be for keeping the game of rugby going around the world."

Virus risk in contact sport lower than first feared

Rugby players could be less at risk of transmitting coronavirus than other contact sports if recommendations, such as banning scrum resets are implemented by national unions.

That’s the view of World Rugby chief medical officer Martin Raftery, who has just finished a report that analysed 60 adult matches in a bid to understand the risks of Covid-19 transmission on the field.

The major recommendations will be put forward to World Rugby's executive committee this week.

They include suggestions that scrum resets be abolished, as well as clamping down on upright tackling, reducing team huddles and banning spitting.

Changing jerseys and washing match balls have also been recommended.

But according to research, because Covid-19 is transmitted through cough, respiratory and saliva droplets, rather than sweat, the physical element of the game is not as big a risk as some may think.

“If you tackle someone around the legs and you’re not near any droplets, then you’re not at risk,” Raftery told the Sydney Morning Herald.

"The perception that contact sport is more dangerous may not be exactly right because it’s about proximity to an infected person.

“A protective measure within rugby is the offside line and it keeps people away from each other. In a game of basketball it’s man on man, as opposed to team on team. We’re saying there may be actually a higher risk in that game because they’re in that one metre for a longer period of time.”

Lions star reveals fears over coronavirus pandemic

Ireland and Lions star Sean O'Brien fears rugby will be the last sport to return from the sporting lockdown and warned that some players may not be comfortable coming back to contact training.

The London Irish flanker had only just come back from an injury lay-off before all sport was suspended.

The English Premiership has not yet confirmed its restart date.

And O’Brien says there is work to do to convince some players to return to the game.

He told the McSport My Motivation series: "It’s a crystal ball question.

"There is a lot of contact in rugby, we’re on top of each other and in each others’ faces. We’re in close proximity at all times.

"It's a difficult one, I think it will be the last one to go back for sure, maybe not training but definitely playing games.

"There was a suggestion we could be put into isolation together, just as players, but that wouldn't sit well with some lads.

"Everything's an option at the minute, it's very up in the air. That's the hard thing, we don't know anything and we don't know the plan to move forward."