While England’s rugby players remain resistant to the allure of R360, one home nation is showing signs of vulnerability to the breakaway league’s advances.

Welsh rugby finds itself amidst considerable turmoil, a situation that has persisted for some time. With the future of the national sport hanging in the balance, Rugby Confidential reports that top Welsh players are increasingly considering opportunities abroad.

As the newly appointed national head coach, Steve Tandy gears up for his inaugural season, with Wales slated to face Argentina, Japan, New Zealand, and South Africa this November. Tandy is expected to announce his squad for the autumn matches next week.

However, significant developments loom in the background. Within the coming month, the fate of the Welsh Rugby Union’s controversial plan to reduce the number of professional teams from four to two will be decided.

This proposal, born out of 18 months fraught with challenges both on and off the field, has sparked substantial opposition. Amidst this uncertainty, Rugby Confidential has learned that at least 10 Welsh players are poised to join R360, should the league launch as anticipated in 2026.

They include flying wing Louis Rees-Zammit, currently with Bristol. Tomos Williams, Dewi Lake, Nicky Smith, Aaron Wainwright, Taulupe Faletau and Josh Adams are also on the new competition’s radar. All seven men are key for Wales and Tandy.

New Wales head coach Steve Tandy is preparing for his first games in charge next month… but some of his players have distractions away from the autumn internationals

Taulupe Faletau is one of many high-profile Wales players on the radar of the controversial R360 rebel league

Flying wing Louis Rees-Zammit, currently with Bristol Bears, is set to join the breakaway tournament

Last week, rugby’s leading unions clubbed together in unprecedented fashion to state players who sign for R360 won’t be able to play Test rugby.

R360 – who aim to spark ‘generational change’ in the domestic game by creating eight new men’s franchise teams who will play all around the world – want to work within the current international calendar.

Notably, the WRU weren’t signatories to the cross-union statement. But they said: ‘The WRU support this statement and we are considering changes we may need to make to qualification rules in Wales as part of ongoing analysis following our recent consultation process.

‘As we continue to analyse and understand the proposals, we reserve the right not to select men’s and women’s players for international duty if they participate in this competition.’

There is an acknowledgement at the WRU that it would be crazy at this stage to completely rule out Welsh players who join R360 from playing Test rugby.

Should they do so, there is a very real possibility Tandy may well lose large numbers of his starting XV. At a time when Welsh rugby is already struggling badly for strength in depth having only just ended a record run of 18 straight Test defeats, such a situation would be a huge concern.

Wales’ top stars are not only wanted by R360, but also in England and France too. Captain Jac Morgan, Wales’ only Test Lion in Australia this summer, is out of contract at the Ospreys and also has admirers around the world.

Wales No 9 and Gloucester captain Williams is a leading R360 target and has been in spectacular form at Kingsholm since he joined the English side from Cardiff.

Wales captain Jac Morgan is out of contract at the Ospreys and has admirers around the world

Wales No 9 and Gloucester captain Tomos Williams is a leading R360 target and has been in spectacular form at Kingsholm

‘Tommy has been great for us but he is out of contract – he was always going to be the sort of player R360 would go after, he fits their model,’ admitted Gloucester boss George Skivington. ‘Tommy will have a lot (of offers) in front of him. There’s no doubt about that. But we’re still talking to him and we’ll see how he feels and how strong the offers are. 

‘We knew last year when the R360 chat started, Tommy would be of massive interest to them. We’ll definitely do our best to keep him.’

While the attractiveness of playing for England has seen the likes of Fin Smith, Alex Mitchell and George Ford reject R360 to stay with their PREM Rugby clubs, Wales can’t bank on similar sentiment. There has been a growing feeling of dissatisfaction among the leading Wales players still based in the country at how the game there has been run.

When once it would have been unthinkable for Welsh players to turn their backs on their country, that is now no longer the case. Many are aware their employment could soon be terminated so the offer of big money to play less, with R360, is hugely attractive.

What happens next for Wales is unclear. However, well-placed sources have indicated the two-team proposal is unlikely to be ratified by the WRU board given the strength of feedback. Going to three teams is a greater possibility, but the mechanism by which that could be done is also fraught with uncertainty and problems. 

Off-field drama is again set to be an unnecessary distraction for Wales in the coming weeks. The WRU’s ticket sales for their four November Tests are also struggling with large numbers still available even for the matches against the All Blacks and Springboks.

In the meantime, the WRU have begun upgrades to their National Centre of Excellence, including improving the gym used by the age-grade sides as well as the social areas used by the players.

Tuilagi set to extend France stay 

Manu Tuilagi is in talks to extend his contract at French side Bayonne.

The former England centre made his last Test appearance in the 2024 Six Nations and then left international rugby behind when he departed Sale to move to the TOP14.

Manu Tuilagi is in talks to extend his contract at French side Bayonne after an impressive start to the season

He has impressed with Bayonne, who made last season’s play-offs in France and have had a strong start to the new campaign. Tuilagi is keen to stay at Stade Jean-Dauger.

‘I’m 34 now and one of the older boys in the group, but I still feel young, I still enjoy my rugby,’ Tuilagi told me before this season began.

‘You have to enjoy it because one day, you’ll have to stop and from there, there is no going back. I’m enjoying it more than ever. I think I’ll see out my career here.’

Living with Lions? Or Lions tamed? 

The official behind-the-scenes Lions documentary of the 2025 tour will be broadcast on TNT Sports and available for fans to watch from October 31.

Since Living with Lions – which provided a brilliant insight into the 1997 trip to South Africa – the team’s official video has always been eagerly anticipated.

Although it has become increasingly sanitised in the professional era, TNT say the 2025 version will provide ‘unmatched access to showcase what it means to pull on the legendary red jersey.’

Given Lions performance guru David Nucifora covered a changing room camera to stop footage during the weather-enforced delay to the third Test with Australia, we will have to wait and see whether that does indeed prove to be the case.

Mount Stoops to see Smith shine

Manchester United ace Mason Mount went under the radar when he took in Harlequins’ London derby win over Saracens at The Stoop last weekend.

Mount has slipped out of the England picture so had time on his hands in the international break. The midfielder is a friend of Harlequins and England No 10 Marcus Smith.

South African full-back Damian Willemse was another notable attendee at the Harlequins-Saracens game.

Marcus Smith put on a show in Harlequins’ win over Saracens last weekend, with his close friend Mason Mount in attendance

England’s schoolboy stars of the future 

The eyes of the schoolboy rugby world were on Sedbergh last Saturday as some of the best young talent in England did battle with Irish rivals.

Sedbergh School took on Dublin’s Blackrock College in a monumental battle watched by a crowd in the region of 2,000. Both are famous rugby institutions and a breeding ground for the next generation of players in their respective countries.

Blackrock edged the game 29-24, but Sedbergh second rows James Moore, who captained the team, and Nico Jones both stood out as did outside centre Oliver Ashton.

Moore and Jones are on Sale’s books and are two of a number of Sedbergh players already in England’s age-grade pathway system.