Prem clubs heading off a cliff 'like Thelma and Louise', warns Haskell

James Haskell, the former England flanker, has likened English rugby to “Thelma and Louise heading off a cliff” after an independent report found Prem clubs made a combined loss of £34m last season.

- Sean Ingle

The report by Leonard Curtis, a leading UK corporate recovery and insolvency firm, suggests the game consider adopting a franchise model, which it says would help Prem clubs save up to £1.9m a year.

Its recommendation comes after its financial audit of the English game found that six of the 10 Prem clubs were balance-sheet insolvent - albeit one fewer than a year ago - and had net debts of £342.5m, up from £329.8m for the same clubs in 2022-23.

At the launch of the report, Haskell warned that English rugby’s business model was “broken beyond tinkering”. He added: “If I am to be charitable, there are flickers of good news. The number of clubs that are balance sheet insolvent has been reduced to six, from seven. Attendances are up in places. The women’s game continues to shine, buoyed up by a home World Cup victory and record-breaking crowds.

“All of this is wonderful and yet it feels like singing Always Look on the Bright Side of Life as the house burns down around you. But here’s the reality: not a single Premiership team made a profit in 2023-24. All 10 clubs lost money for the third year in a row.