Amid reports of player unrest in camp through a difficult 2026, explores whether the structures of English rugby are built to succeed

Gazing out from the hospitality box of one of England’s ever-growing list of corporate partners at Twickenham this week, the Rugby Football Union (RFU) chief executive Bill Sweeney surveyed that which lay in front of him. Up in the stands, Allianz Stadium staff were busying themselves making sure each one of the 82,000 green seats was ready for use; down on the pitch, the grounds team were putting the final touches to a newly-laid surface that it is hoped will survive the rigours of the nine Nations Championship fixtures it will host in a hectic November.

A busy month, and vital year, lies ahead. Sweeney is seven years into his tenure now and talked at length of all he wished to achieve in 2027. He spoke of devolving more power to the community game and a more regionalised approach. He outlined his plans to embed the new Nations Championship model that will place more power – and revenue – in the hands of 10 of the world’s top unions. There was discussion of the need for closer integration between the professional clubs and England. And, of course and most importantly, there is the small matter of a men’s World Cup ever closer on the horizon.

How prepared are England for that tournament? Sweeney was not asked and did not address the question directly but one could intimate the importance of this autumn. This is the last chance for Steve Borthwick and his squad to test themselves against the southern hemisphere’s best before arriving in Australia next September.

There are just 10 games until Borthwick, who has been given what appears unequivocal backing, names his World Cup touring party – the time for experimentation or a late change of course as endured in the last cycle appears to be gone. “I have been very explicit to the team over a period of time now about why I consistent in selection,” Borthwick said recently, suggesting that he believes he knows more than 25 of his likely 33-man squad.

The question is if the time to this point has been best used. Another Six Nations has come and gone without success; indeed, England produced their worst-ever campaign. The difference between they and South Africa in July was pronounced. The positive energy imbued during the 12-match winning run of last year seems to have dissipated at twice the speed; it is not inconceivable that there might be boos if a dangerous Australia are victorious in England’s November opener on Sunday. Whispers of player discontent and divides again emerged in the Six Nations and continued through the summer, though staunch rebuttals were issued on Friday.

Which all raises English rugby’s unanswerable question – why is one of the world’s best resourced unions not consistently producing world-leading teams? During a past life with Adidas, Sweeney was told by the double World Cup-winning coach Steve Hansen that England’s structures were fundamentally doomed to fail, and they would never win another.

“This kind of boom or bust element of English rugby is something we're trying to address,” Sweeney explained this week. “If you look back, there have been three dynasties. There was 1991 to ’96. And there was 2000 to 2003, under [Clive] Woodward. And then there was the Eddie era, which is 2016 to, call it, 2020. I think in those three dynasties, we won 10 Six Nations championships. Outside of those three dynasties, over a 60-year period, we've only won two.”

The RFU is strategising to address that. Sweeney would like a more aligned structure between club and country, like those enjoyed by Ireland and New Zealand. That may be mutually exclusive with an ever more ambitious, and investable, Prem. The idea of the RFU taking control of the academy structure, and perhaps introducing a player draft, has been mooted, but would be highly complex. A concerted piece of work is about to be done to try and cultivate more cut-through stars like Henry Pollock, with hope it can access new fans and, ultimately, players.

They, though, are longer-term fixes. In the shorter term, they embark on another shot of silverware seemingly no closer to the sort of sustained success that should be achieved. The scheduling of the finals weekend at the ground means that one trophy will be hoisted at Twickenham this November – two if you count the entirely unnecessary hemisphere shield. The permutations are complex in a strange tournament but for English hands to hoist the inaugural Nations Championship aloft will likely require an autumn clean sweep that includes a final victory over South Africa, provided the Springboks beat both Ireland and France. Are England currently constructed to make that kind of run?

The fixtures fall relatively kindly, admittedly. Australia first up are a worry; Japan in week two less so, even with the Eddie Jones factor. By the third week of this November, though, New Zealand could be running on fumes after a uniquely gruelling international itinerary – it could again be a good time to play them. One could make the same suggestion about the draw for next year’s World Cup, which, if all goes to form, could see England make the final without having played any of South Africa, France or the All Blacks.

Perhaps that is the gamble that England are taking. Borthwick’s man management has long been called into question but few dispute his capacity as a tactical and technical thinker; nor his work ethic or drive to succeed. A look down the selection for their first fixture reveals a settled selection full of talent, with a good blend of age and cap count. In Maro Itoje, Jamie George, Ellis Genge and Ollie Chessum they have an increasingly impressive set of leaders; in Pollock, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and Fin Smith, new talents that can lift their ceiling higher. Get on a roll at next year’s tournament, as they managed in 2023 when they came within a late penalty of beating the world champions, and they will at the very least have a shot.

But England expects success again. If there is any frittered faith – either in camp or outside it – then in these next few weeks it is crucial to re-find it. Sponsorship revenue – remember those corporate partners – may have grown by nearly 50 per cent in the last three years but it is only on-pitch performance that matters to those who will fill those green seats this month.

“I have full confidence that you are going to see a team that is fighting for one another,” Itoje said ahead of the Australia game. “We are going to be aggressive. It’s an important game. There’s no shying away from that. We want to set the tone of how this autumn is going to go. But I often think about these big games, and what is the alternative? Would I want to be part of a team that doesn’t have consequential meaning behind the games? I want to be playing in teams where games matter and there is something on the line.

“These are the games that get the blood pumping. It is big in terms of where we want to go, but we want to do well in this competition and respond to the inconsistencies of the Six Nations. We want to show ourselves and England rugby fans we’ve turned a corner. For that reason, this game is huge.”