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Chairpersons

John Jeffrey Resigns from World Rugby and Six Nations in Wake of Scottish Rugby Union's Failed Support for His Leadership Bid

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

John Jeffrey, the 65-year-old vice-chairman of World Rugby, has tendered his resignation from both World Rugby and the Six Nations following the Scottish Rugby Union's (SRU) failure to support his bid to become chairman of the international governing body. Jeffrey, a celebrated member of Scotland's 1990 Grand Slam team and one of the country's all-time greats, had been the sole candidate to succeed Sir Bill Beaumont as World Rugby chairman but ultimately lost out to three other contenders. The SRU's decision not to back Jeffrey's bid has left Scotland without a representative on the international governing body's executive board and has sparked a fierce backlash from the experienced former rugby player.

Key Takeaways:

  • John Jeffrey has resigned as vice-chairman of World Rugby and president of the Six Nations after the Scottish Rugby Union (SRU) failed to support his bid to become chairman of World Rugby.
  • The SRU's custodian board, chaired by Professor Lorne Crerar, wrote to Jeffrey to inform him that they would not be backing his candidacy, citing issues with his chairmanship of Scottish Rugby.
  • Jeffrey believes the root cause of the breakdown in his relationship with the SRU is his opposition to a governance review that was introduced in late 2022.
  • The review led to a new Scottish Rugby Union body taking on the responsibility for the oversight of the organisation's main operating vehicle, Scottish Rugby Limited.
  • Jeffrey has defended his record as chairman of Scottish Rugby between 2020 and 2023, but admitted that the Siobhan Cattigan tragedy was badly handled.
  • Financial results are likely to have been a factor in the SRU's failure to back Jeffrey, with the union posting a £10.5 million loss for the last financial year.
  • Jeffrey has expressed his disappointment and shock at being beaten by candidates from other countries in the World Rugby chairman election.

Statistics:

  • 40: the number of times Jeffrey played for Scotland.
  • 1990: the year in which Scotland won the Grand Slam, a tournament that Jeffrey was a member of.
  • 5 years: the length of time Jeffrey spent as chairman of Scottish Rugby.
  • £10.5 million: the loss posted by the Scottish Rugby Union for the last financial year.
  • 3 years: the length of time it took Scottish Rugby to apologise to the family of Siobhan Cattigan, who died in 2021 after suffering concussions while playing rugby.

Sources:

  • Byline: Graham Bean
  • "I have just tendered my resignation from Six Nations and World Rugby as Scotland representative on both," said Jeffrey.
  • "That is as Six Nations council member, president of the Six Nations, World Rugby executive board member and vice-chairman."
  • The Scottish Rugby Union's custodian board, chaired by Professor Lorne Crerar, wrote to Jeffrey to tell him they would not back him.
  • Jeffrey believes the root cause of the breakdown in his relationship with the SRU is his opposition to a governance review which brought the current structure into place in late 2022.
  • Jeffrey was chairman of Scottish Rugby's executive arm at the time.
  • "As you all know there is no love lost between myself and the Scottish Rugby Union board over the governance review," Jeffrey told a small gathering of journalists in an Edinburgh hotel.

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