Players in Revolt Over World Cup Image Rights

The possibility of a widespread Rugby World Cup player revolt increased last night after players' union leaders launched a concerted attack on the International Rugby Board's restrictive rules concerning prize-money and intellectual property rights.

The International Rugby Players Association has claimed many leading players are "seriously considering" not signing the individual contracts required by the tournament's participation agreement in a row which bears many of the hallmarks of the acrimonious dispute which marred the build-up to the recent cricket World Cup.

The association is concerned the agreement would strip players of their right to profit from their names, images and signatures and is also demanding that, in common with the cricket and football equivalents, the Rugby World Cup should offer prize money. The IRB hopes to make over $A170m (£68m) from the tournament which is being staged in Australia between October and November. There is no prize-money fund, however, whereas the cricket World Cup allocated around $A8m to player prize-money.

"The international players are pretty strongly aligned on this one," said IRPA chairman Tony Dempsey, who issued a statement backed by six major countries on the eve of a two-day Rugby World Cup team managers' meeting in Sydney at which the equally thorny topics of sponsorship logos, accreditation for support staff and media access to training will be debated.

"The IRB and Rugby World Cup Limited want to have their cake and eat it too. They want to impose employer-related obligations on the players, such as unlimited use of their images in perpetuity for commercial exploitation without financial rewards. They are out of step with modern global trends."

Yesterday, nevertheless, it emerged the Rugby Football Union and their New Zealand counterparts have now signed the participation agreement pending clarification of several issues, effectively leaving the players to go it alone. As yet strike action has not been mooted but Damian Hopley, chief executive of the PRA, is calling on the IRB to prevent the dispute worsening between now and July 31, the deadline by which unions are expected to have gathered the signatures of players involved.

"It would be dangerous and slightly inflammatory for us to say there will be boycotts but I think the players, as key stakeholders in the sport, are quite right to request that the IRB front up and discuss these various issues," said Hopley.

"Long gone are the days of players being told what to do. We operate now in a multi-million pound industry, the players have short career spans and need to know their rights are being looked after."

The prospect of the tournament going ahead without the world's leading players is unthinkable but organisers will be mindful of the furore which engulfed the world of cricket when top players such as India's Sachin Tendulkar were asked to sign contracts forbidding any personal endorsements which might conflict with World Cup sponsors. Advisers to leading names such as Jonny Wilkinson and Jonah Lomu will fight equally hard to preserve their clients' rights.

The Irish players' spokesman Niall Woods also feels rugby's reputation as a global sport is under threat. "There is an urgent need for the IRB to meet and deal with IRPA on these matters to ensure that this situation does not escalate and create unnecessary tensions at a time when rugby has its greatest profile around the world."

Phil Vickery, the England and Lions prop, will make his comeback for Gloucester in Sunday's Premiership match against Leeds at Headingley, his first game since he faced Munster on January 18. On a red-letter day at Kingsholm Gloucester's England wing James Simpson-Daniel signed a new three-year contract.