Racing
League
Rugby
Cricket
Golf
Motorsport
Combat Sports
Football
Netball
Basketball
Other Sports
Sport Nation
"Appetite to disrupt": Rugby Australia boss' surprising R360 admission
Sam Kosack • October 15th, 2025 9:42 pm
Rugby Australia CEO Phil Waugh has revealed he can appreciate the goal of R360, despite the federation’s decision to prohibit players from international duties if they join the code.
Rugby Australia last week joined New Zealand, South Africa, Ireland, England, Scotland, France and Italy in deeming any players who join R360 ineligible for international selection in order to diminish players joining the competition.
R360 is a rebel rugby competition modeled on a grand prix style of playing matches in different major cities, paying players money neither rugby union nor league can match.
It frames itself as a “new opportunity… essential for the sport to grow”, however, the lack of information about the league was the key driver behind Rugby Australia’s decision to take steps to stop players from joining.
“I think there's an appreciation that the game needs some disruption,” Waugh said on SEN 1170 Sportsday.
“I think it's been a big frustration for spectators, certainly in our market around the way the game's officiated, and some of the restrictions around laws and how we make the game more entertaining.
“I think there's definitely been an appetite to disrupt and we're seeing that come through through R360.
“The reality is there's just not a lot of information that's available at the moment and I think that a lot of the unions were being misrepresented to agents and players.
“It's really important for us to have a firm stance as a game and clearly the international game is really powerful and appealing to players, and we need to ensure that we protect that.
“We'll work through as more information comes forth, but with the information that we have at the moment, we've obviously taken the chance that we have.”
The NRL today announced a 10-year ban for any players who join or negotiate with a league not sanctioned by the Australian Rugby League Commission, joining those international rugby federations in placing prohibitive measures on the code.
The announcement was made to directly combat the growing threat of R360 and stop star players leaving rugby league after big names were linked to the code.
Waugh believes the NRL and ARU can and will continue to work together in order to help both codes succeed.
“I've always taken that stance (that the NRL and ARU can work together).
“I've always been really pragmatic about this and the fact that boys and girls are playing league and union, and I'm less concerned about a young girl or a boy playing NRL or AFL as long as they're experiencing rugby.
“Scheduling becomes really important at a young age so they can play both and young kids will gravitate to the culture that suits them best.
“We've got a very open mind around coexisting. We've co-existed with rugby league for a very long time and it will continue to occur.
“Our position is that our value proposition we see is very different to that of the NRL and we’re very proud of the proposition that we provide to players and athletes and we'll continue down that path.
“I'm actually going to the Everest this Saturday so maybe I’ll link up with PVL (Peter V’Landys) and chat to him about it.”
