Less than a year after a scathing independent review of its culture, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) is facing new allegations of sexism and inequality.

These centre around lengthy contract negotiations relating to the senior women’s football team.

According to The Daily Telegraph, the external union threatened players with consequences, including being removed from major tournaments, if they did not agree to the union’s terms.

The WRU said it had launched an independent review of the process and would publish its recommendations.

The women’s team signed their first professional contracts in early 2022, and the Welsh team made great strides on the pitch, finishing third in the 2022 and 2023 Women’s Six Nations Championships.

But while the contract negotiations were ongoing, the 2024 Welsh team saw a marked decline in form, finishing bottom of the league.

In January this year, the players sought representation from the Women’s Rugby Association (WRA), with demands including pay and a performance-based maternity leave policy.

The Women’s Relationship Authority confirmed the Daily Telegraph report, saying the “girls were physically and mentally exhausted” and the negotiations had affected their health.

The Daily Telegraph said the players were warned in August that they would miss WXV2 in South Africa and next year’s Rugby World Cup if they did not sign, and were subsequently given a three-hour deadline.

Wales captain Hannah Jones confirmed in September that the issue had been resolved and said they were “happy with the contract”.

Later that month, ahead of WXV2’s tournament opener against Australia, the WRU announced it had signed 37 full-time players and proudly stated that Wales was “one of the highest-paid international women’s teams in the world game”.

WRU chief executive Abi Tierney said the governing body’s board had heard from the players in August that they had concerns about the contract negotiation process.

“The WRU welcomed this approach and the WRU president immediately initiated two activities,” she said.

“One is to complete negotiations with the core group and the second is a board-led review of the entire contract process.

“It is not appropriate to discuss the details of confidential negotiations at this time, but the WRU will publish the findings and recommendations of its review shortly.” ”

A joint statement from the Welsh Rifle Association said: “Having represented the Welsh women’s team this year, we have been blown away by their courage, determination and unwavering commitment to improving not only their own working conditions but those of future generations of players in Wales.

“We are proud to support this group of women during such challenging times and look forward to seeing their continued achievements in such an exciting year for women’s rugby.

“The WRA believes the WRU’s initiation of an independent review of this process is an important step and we look forward to seeing the outcome in due course. ”