Almost 300 former rugby union players suffering with brain injuries launch joint claim for damages at High Court in London

• The claimants blame the sport for brain injuries after repeated blows to the head 
• The case will be brought against World Rugby as well as the RFU and the WRU 
• A host of former players have detailed how traumatic injuries changed their lives

A group of 295 former rugby union players will take the next step in their claim for damages against the game’s governing bodies at the High Court in London on Friday.

The ex-stars are all suffering with various irreversible neurological impairments including early onset dementia and probable chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and believe their brain injuries came as a result of playing rugby. 

They claim they were not aware taking part in the sport would cause such problems.

On Friday, lawyers for the players will have several applications heard, chiefly that their compensation claims should be seen as one group action case rather than hundreds of individual claims. 

The claimants have also submitted over 5,000 pages of supporting medical records, case summaries and other documents.

England World Cup winner Steve Thompson is among the group set to sue rugby’s authorities

The case will be brought against World Rugby, the Rugby Football Union and the WRU 

The litigation – which first began in 2020 – is against World Rugby, England’s Rugby Football Union and the Welsh Rugby Union.

It involves 55 former players who represented England, 77 ex-Wales internationals and eight from Scotland

There are now over 475 former players involved in total if you include those from rugby league and 25 former football professionals.

‘The claimants contend the defendants were negligent in failing to take reasonable action in order to protect players from permanent injury caused by repetitive concussive and sub-concussive blows,’ said Richard Boardman of Rylands Garth, the firm representing the ex-players.

‘Many players now suffer from various irreversible neurological impairments. We are seeing the same worrying symptoms in numerous cases across all three contact sports.

‘These symptoms include chronic depression, aggression, significant memory loss, incontinence, drug and alcohol addiction and, in some cases, suicide attempts.

‘The players we represent love the games they played.

The claimants include three players of World Cup-winning teams and 14 England internationals

‘We aim to challenge the current perceptions of the sport’s governing bodies to reach a point where they accept the connection between repetitive blows to the head and permanent neurological injury and take steps to protect players and support those who are injured.’

Meanwhile, Gloucester’s England hooker Jack Singleton has joined the exodus to France after arriving in Toulon to sign a contract as injury cover.

Simon Raiwalui, who led Fiji as head coach to the quarter-finals of this year’s World Cup where they were beaten by England, has joined World Rugby.

Raiwalui has been appointed as the sport’s governing body’s high performance pathways and player development manager to ‘support its core mission of increasing the competitiveness of international rugby as the sport prepares for a new era of opportunity and growth.’

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