Toulon and Racing fined by LNR over salary cap rules

Toulon and Racing 92 have been fined by the LNR in France for an apparent breach of the salary cap.

Following the hearing for the two Top 14 clubs on the 4 July 2019, the Specialized Section of the Committee on Discipline and Regulations decided to fine both clubs for failing to communicate all nescessary document within the framework of the current salary cap regulation.

Racing 92 were given a suspended fine of €50,000, while RC Toulon were given a €80,000 fine, €40,000 of which was suspended.

These decisions may be appealed to the FFR Appeal Board within 7 days of the decision.

The current LNR salary cap is €11.3 million per year.

Toulon have recruited heavily this year, with Sergio Parisse and Eben Etzebeth making headlines after signing – post-Rugby World Cup – for the French ‘Galacticos’.

Toulon owner Mourad Boudjellal failed in his bid in 2016 to become president of the LNR, the governing body of the Top 14 league.

Earlier this year he called on French rugby to crush the world.

“For the next elections to the league, I will not show up but I will present a programme and whoever wants to pick it up will pick,” explained the comic book millionaire in an interview with French website, RugbyRama.

“I think French rugby has to crush the world. We are the All Blacks of rugby economically, we must also become sporting. For that, there are methods. We must abolish certain taboos, look for causes, stop pushing open doors and finally believe that all clubs must be similar. Uniformity has never advanced.”

Boudjellal’s particular bugbear regarding the set-up of the French league is the JIFF system that is putting pressure on the recruitment of big-name foreign players into the domestic game in France.

“This system is a stupidity because it totally disrupted the market,” he said. “Young people do not have to work hard for big salaries, just to be JIFF.”