In this gripping episode of The Good, The Bad, and The Rugby, Alex, Hask, and Tins sit down with Bill Sweeney, the embattled CEO of the RFU, as he faces mounting scrutiny from every corner of England.
With an SGM looming, record financial losses, grassroots discontent, and criticism from players, fans, and referees alike, Sweeney breaks his silence. From the future of the Championship to the controversial bonus payments and the state of English rugby at all levels.
This is a critical conversation about leadership, and whether Sweeney and the RFU are fit for purpose in 2025 & beyond.
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Season 5 is Sponsored by Continental Tyres.
00:00 – Intro
01:41 – The Charges Against Sweeney
03:46 – Bill Sweeney Breaks His Silence
05:54 – Is the RFU Totally Broken?
11:23 – Life at the Top
14:22 – “Absolute Nonsense!” Sweeney Slams Spending Accusations
19:40 – Allianz Twickenham: The Biggest Rugby Deal Ever
23:28 – The Controversial Big Bonus
32:50 – Record Losses Explained
44:20 – Community Game Slashed – How to fix?
49:59 – Twickenham Ticket Prices: A Total Rip-Off?
56:56 – Time to Tear Up the Constitution?
01:00:00 – Are Premiership Clubs Still on the Brink?
01:01:32 – The Community Tackle Height Botch Job
01:06:37 – The Championship’s Last Hope?
01:11:46 – Listener Questions Answered!
01:19:20 – Will Bill Sweeney survive the SGM?
Welcome to The Good, The Bad & The Rugby with journalist and former broadcaster Alex Payne, England and Lions flanker James Haskell, and World Cup Winner Mike Tindall.
#Rugby #BillSweeney #EnglandRugby
22 Comments
He has lots and lots of excuses and reasons why things cant be done, But not many solutilns as to how to solve them………can i suggest a PR team for one……Digital second……how can you release a council statement re tackle height without proof reading the statement and then admitting it may be flawed and therefore likely to be reviewed…..ffs……..incompetent CEO not fit for purpose
Deeply depressing to hear the CEO of the RFU show no appetite to reform huge parts of an organisation that simply aren’t for purpose – for someone on a £742k base salary to be a ‘yes man’ simply isn’t good enough.
Kids in academy programmes are generally playing schools rugby, so with the combination of playing and training time restrictions they don’t have time to play for grassroots clubs.
1:03:30 because he’s clearly bullshitting. They realised they went too radical, backtracked and then said oh it was just a miscommunication
There isn't a better podcast host than Alex anywhere and his love for the game is clear. Give him a job at RFU and let him rip it up. What a guy.
How kind of him to stay on…. on that money who would politely leave, so he plays the game gets fired and gets a payout.
It is UEFA president money and they make nearly 5bn per season from the club game alone.
The retoteic of it's complicated and challenging, it's excuses. Rugby is stuck in the dark ages, he is not going to change that.
Sorry be gone.
1:03:45 fuck yes payno get in lad
Good interview
So why haven't they fixed the issues that he knows exist? It's more flim-flam. Why do we pay for Penny Hill, for example, how did that cosy relationship pop up? It's all complex because that's what you have agreed. None of it fit for purpose; that is the point. All this makes me very angry indeed. Great that neither the North nor the South apparently doesn't want to do what's right for the game. It gets worse. RFU hasn't said much because you silenced the RFU Council and scotched the SGM…..projects that they have only just started, why just started we have been asking these questions for years. By mentioning disgruntled employees, you are already discussing it! GMS is a shit show as an example of the digital world.
You know what the grievances are we have told you repeatedly. The RFU tries to push the women's game, but it is ineffective. What it needs is paid coaches in schools, that is a guaranteed way to increase the Girl's Game. What exactly are the aims of creating a legacy? They haven't told anyone what that legacy looks like and how they intend to do it yet, and it's this year!!
Nothing has to be done that's a cop-out! Grass Roots insurance?? We dont see it, unless its a catastrophic injury! Not for concussion. Funding goes to the CBs who waste it in Bars.
State Schools, State Schools, State Schools.
Shove it Sweeney. Utter prick
Problem is it is still run by the old bloke brigade and they don't like change
Really like how you let everyone have their say unless we hear both sides of the story so many people are uniformed yet everyone has an opinion and believes they know everything you let people share their story then people can make up their own minds I applaud that about your show 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
Alex clearly doesn’t like the guy or at least thinks he’s incompetent. Haskell and Tindall may as well have not been on the pod. Aside from snide bonus related remarks.
The ticketing situation described sounds utterly utterly ridiculous given the tiny proportion available on open sale.
People don’t care about England football outside of tournaments, but every international for England rugby means something and attracts real interest. They know this because tickets are mentally expensive and they still sell out. Like it or loathe it, it’s the posh people that want to be there and if they reduced prices to attract different fans the posh people would hate it. I’ve been told off for celebrating tries before. Imagine getting a working class crowd in and they got that treatment. It would be carnage.
This was not a good idea from Bill- comes across badly
It seems I'm in a minority however I believe Sweeney is doing a good job the fact of the matter is he and the executives have turned around the financial position of the union since COVID and English rugby is starting to get stronger again from Academy level upwards as well as getting more income into the game going forward. Nearly every criticism levelled against the executive and Sweeney is incorrect and driven by a personal agenda of some sort or another, some of the protagonists are just plain ignorant and misinformed while others are just plain lying, now that's a fact.
Just Walk away. The game needs affordable ticket prices to appeal to a new audience not clubs charging £35+ for inadequate seats/standing room.
Championship & League 1 grounds are not good enough compared to other sports.
The Premiership should have 14 teams not 10.
I tend to agree with the hosts. I'm no Sweeney fan, but changing the CEO will achieve very little unless the whole structure & constitution changes too.
However I doubt that will happen due to the many vested interests who won't be prepared to yield or compromise for the good of the game from top to bottom.
Can you get someone on from the rfu council ? Id quite like to see them be scrutinised to the same extent.
The bonus fiasco isnt even the key problem for ne. Why has he recieved regular pay risies over his tenure to go from c400k to 700k! its only been 4 years and its a not for profit organization. If was closer to his initial base everything he just spewed would be more palatable. Instead he treats the RFU as if its a FTSE100 PLC where your focus is feathering your own nest – he is in service to the sport and community
People unfortunately arguing from an emotional point of view rather than listening to cold hard facts about finances etc. Like him or loathe him, Bill came across as genuine and tried to explain. England can do so much more. The fact that money is controlled by the number of Trans people when they're being banned shows how woke the sport has become
Walk away please