The Italian side Benetton Treviso have said they are to leave the Pro12 at the end of the season because of uncertainty over the tournament's future. Club officials said "a prolonged lack of final decisions" over cross-border competitions in 2014-15 had led them not to renew their contract to participate.
The news will heap extra pressure on the Welsh, Irish and Scottish unions to find an urgent solution to the ongoing row over next year's Heineken Cup. The Welsh regions are negotiating to join a new Anglo-Welsh league if the Heineken Cup is mothballed next season. If that were to happen Ireland's provinces would potentially be left with only Glasgow and Edinburgh to play against. There is no sponsor in place for next season, although Sky has agreed to broadcast matches.
A meeting of Six Nations and club stakeholders is due to be held on Wednesday, with the looming loss of Italian representation in the Pro12 also threatening Heineken Cup peace proposals. The mooted new qualification structure for a revised 20-team European tournament had involved equal representation from the three main leagues: the Premiership, the French Top 14 and the Pro12.
If the latter were to shrink significantly, merit-based European qualification based on domestic results each season would clearly be compromised. The prospects of Italian involvement would also be reduced on the basis that diluting the best Italian talent into eight teams in a proposed new domestic league rather than having two in the Pro12 would make it even more difficult for them to be competitive.
Treviso and Zebre sit in 10th and 11th places in the Pro12 table, with only Connacht beneath them.
Two Italian sides, including Treviso, were admitted to the Pro12 in 2010 but were required to pay for the privilege. The national coach, Jacques Brunel, argued last month that exposure to higher-quality club games had helped raise standards in the national team and expressed the hope they would remain in the tournament.
Instead the Italian Rugby Federation president, Alfredo Gavazzi, has been declaring plans for a nationwide, eight-team domestic league. Treviso officials have cautiously backed the FIR's proposals but said they would need to scrutinise them further before committing fully.
A Treviso statement confirmed that the decision to leave the Pro12 was also taken because of "the absence of certainty about the future forms of organisation, participation and regulations" relating to the league. Their participation agreement is due to expire on 30 June.
