Worcester Warriors confirmed for return to expanded Championship

Worcester Warriors are set to make their long-awaited return to professional rugby next season after being officially accepted into the newly expanded 14-team Championship.

The announcement marks a major step forward for the club, nearly two and a half years after financial collapse forced it into administration and expulsion from the Premiership.

The revamped second tier of English rugby will feature Worcester alongside the current 12 Championship clubs and one team promoted from National One.

The Warriors will once again play their home games at Sixways Stadium, a symbolic return to the ground where they last competed before going under in September 2022.

With the 2025-26 season just five months away, Worcester face a tight timeline to assemble a full squad and coaching staff.

However, a large number of experienced players remain unattached following the recent financial failures of several English clubs, including Wasps, London Irish, and Jersey.

The club’s rebuilding process has already begun, and Leicester Tigers defence coach Matt Everard has been linked with a coaching position.
Club owner Christopher Holland acquired Worcester’s rugby assets from the administrators and has provided the Rugby Football Union with a financial security guarantee.

He has also committed to settling debts owed to “rugby creditors” by the end of 2025—a key condition for the Warriors’ readmission at the Championship level instead of restarting at the bottom of the rugby pyramid.

“Rugby creditors” do not include tax authorities such as HMRC, who are still owed a substantial portion of the £6 million debt from the club’s collapse. Additionally, Worcester has yet to repay £5.9 million of the £15.7 million loan it received during the pandemic under the DCMS support scheme.

Despite this, the club's re-entry has been approved under the RFU’s newly established Tier 2 Board, which now governs the Championship alongside club representatives. The league is expected to undergo rebranding, and team membership had been open for tender in recent months.

“We are really pleased to be bringing rugby back to Worcester and have made significant progress in stabilising the Sixways business as well as successfully navigating the detailed application process for entry of the club into the second tier of professional rugby in England.”

On the squad assembly, Holland said: “We have made a large selection of conditional offers. We will have a competitive team, equivalent to the top five in the [existing] league.”

Holland, who also owns the brand and remaining assets of Wasps, would be permitted under RFU rules to hold majority ownership in one club and a minority stake (up to 25 percent) in another if Wasps also make a return.