First Rugby World Club Cup to be held in 2028

The first Rugby World Club Cup will be held in 2028 after "unanimous" agreement from the relevant leagues and unions, European Professional Club Rugby has announced.

The competition will then be staged every four years with 16 teams taking part, eight qualifying through the Investec Champions Cup and the remainder from Super Rugby and Japan.

EPCR chairman Dominic McKay confirmed the plans, which have been spoken about for "two or three years", were finalised in Cardiff before the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup finals.

The Champions Cup, which was established in 1995, currently brings together teams from England, France, Ireland, Wales, Scotland, South Africa and Italy.

That competition, along with the second-tier Challenge Cup, will continue to take place, with McKay stating the aim of the World Club Cup is to "elevate them further" while also adding that "ambitious plans" for the already established European tournaments will be revealed in the coming weeks.

"The Investec Champions Cup is the greatest club competition in the world, and we're going to continue to protect that, nurture it and develop it further," McKay said.

"We want to create this World Club Cup proposition in 2028 and 2032 with our friends from the south [southern hemisphere].

"We have these incredible competitions that we own and operate, and we want to find a way to elevate them further and bring in teams from Australia, from New Zealand, from Japan, and we'll do that through the World Club Cup."