European Cup schism has become rugby’s civil war

The news that French clubs are set to boycott next year’s Heineken Cup should come as no surprise.

In ways, it is almost surprising that the crisis in the new professional game has not come to a head before now. In essence, the French boycott is not about the European competition as such. It’s about money.

The investors who moved to pour money into rugby a decade ago when the old amateur game ...