'The players will decide' - where next for rugby's civil war?

The battle lines have been drawn.

On one side the established national unions which govern and run rugby union, attracting fans and sponsors while investing millions of pounds back into the sport.

On the other a cohort of former players and established movers and shakers within the game who have become frustrated at a sport's perceived inability to grow, and who promise big financial backing.

Who will prevail?

"The players decide."

That's the view of Roger Mitchell, outlined in a post on social media., external

The former Scottish Premier League football chief is now an investor in, and board member of, rugby union's proposed breakaway R360 league.

"It's all irrelevant really. This is only about what the players want. And I fear that a lot of traditional sport and its leaders haven't grasped that fact yet. The players decide," he wrote in a personal capacity.

His post came 24 hours after a joint statement of rugby's leading nations warned that any player deciding to participate in R360 would make them "ineligible for international selection".

The statement from the unions said they welcomed new investment and innovation in rugby, "but any competition must strengthen the sport as a whole, not fragment or weaken it".

Mitchell believes that the game's power-brokers were never likely to integrate R360 into the existing calendar.

"I personally advised… that the incumbents would never embrace the positives of R360," he wrote. "Sadly. I know sport."

One player has already decided.

This week England and British and Irish Lions fly-half Fin Smith signed a new multi-year contract with Northampton Saints.

So was he tempted by R360?

"It's something people are aware of. There's chatter in the changing room here and there about it because it's something that's been talked about so much in the media," the 23-year-old told BBC Sport.

"From my point of view I want to stay in England and give myself the best chance of playing for my country so it's not something I've thought about too much.

"I try not to speak too much to my agent about white noise, so I can focus on what I do on the pitch. I had options and made my decision to stay here and it's one I'm delighted with.

"Playing in England and playing in a team I feel like I can show what I'm best at here, was right at the top, so in the end it was a fairly simple decision."

Fellow England, Northampton and Lions back Tommy Freeman admitted the players are discussing the possible opportunities with R360 in the dressing room.

"I'd be lying if I said no," he said. "It's come into the picture and you're going to talk about it.

"I don't really understand much about it. I've had no contact from them. It's something I am naive and don't know much about."

The R360 concept is fronted by Mike Tindall, an England World Cup winner and member of the Royal family, former Bath player and coach Stuart Hooper and Mark Spoors, an executive sports agent.

It proposes a global competition of eight franchises for men and four for women, consisting of the world's leading players.

Reports suggest it has secured the backing of Dubai-based 885 Capital, a shareholder in the Baller League., external

Some start-up tournaments change the shape of the sport forever, such as Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket in the late 1970s, or the rebel Indian Cricket League (2007-09), which ultimately led to the establishment of the Indian Premier League.

Some fade into the background such as the International Swimming League, which has yet to resurface after its three seasons up to 2021.

Others, with deep pockets, such as LIV Golf and football's proposed European Super League - stay around longer and have an impact.

Rugby union has had previous disrupters. The World 12s, a proposed annual 12-a-side tournament with big-name backers such as former All Blacks captain Kieran Read, was due to start in 2022. It didn't.

For their part the national unions do not deny that there have been meetings about R360.

But they say they have not been presented with the details they need around player welfare and international representation. In response R360 said it would "greatly reduce player load and capture the attention of a new generation of fans globally".

Meanwhile the International Rugby Players Association, an umbrella group that connects player unions, has urged players to seek legal advice if considering R360.

"I think the battle lines have been drawn publicly and everyone knows where the unions stand," says sports lawyer Ben Cisneros of Morgan Sports Law.

"The main thing everybody is seeking is a clearer understanding about what the competition looks like and what the future holds.

"If players are going to be entering into new contracts with clubs within this new entity, there are going to need to be a number of assurances that they'll want to have about the viability of the competition, whether indeed it is going to happen, the opportunity to play and be paid and of course to have assurances around matters such as player welfare issues around anti-doping etc.

"I think all parties are right to be raising those questions, including the unions. They've identified that there is a lack of detail out there."

A ban on players representing their country and playing for R360 is one clear detail, but, could that be challenged?

"What the European courts have said is that if you're going to have rules about whether new competitions are going to be sanctioned and whether players can participate in them while remaining part of the eco-system, they have to be clear, objective, transparent, proportionate, and non-discriminatory," said Cisneros.

"That's something the lawyers will be scrutinising and whether any potential competition law issue could be justified is another thorny question.

"Recent judgements have suggested a tightening up and applying a more orthodox approach to sport from a competition law perspective.

"So if the rules or the lack of rules is found to be an issue from a competition law perspective then it might be quite difficult for the governing bodies to justify bans.

"It wouldn't be beyond the realms of possibility that rugby might be headed for legal action."

A comment below Mitchell's LinkedIn post suggested the same.

Mitchell responded with a winking emoji.