World Rugby tackle height trial needs more data before any elite roll-out

A lower legal tackle height will not reach the top level of the game just yet. The World Rugby Executive Board has decided it does not have enough evidence to make a final call on taking the change into the wider elite game.

The decision follows a trial of the lower tackle height at the 2026 U20 Junior World Championship. World Rugby said the trial was broadly successful, but it covered only 40 games, which leaves the governing body with relatively little data to work from.

World Rugby chairman Brett Robinson summed up the board's position: "the reality is we’re not yet able to come to a definitive conclusion on such an important issue in our game."

Looking for an elite test bed

The trial is not going away. World Rugby will keep running it at its own under-20 competitions, and it is encouraging unions to look for chances to trial the lower tackle height in elite competitions. In the governing body's view, the only way to gather enough data is for an elite domestic competition to take on the trial.

The findings from the U20 event will be discussed in detail at World Rugby's Medical Commission Conference in Frankfurt, Germany, on Tuesday 27 and Wednesday 28 October 2026. The session on the trial results starts at 11:30 CET (12:30 SAST) on Tuesday 27 October.

The knee drop problem

The trial has also brought an unwanted side effect. Tackling lower has led to more dangerous "knee drop" tackles, in which players drop to their knees.

To deal with that, the Executive Board issued a law clarification from the start of October that reinforces existing law, with officials to step in only in clear and obvious cases. Under the clarification, the knee drop is treated as an action the law already covers, and it can be punished with a penalty.

The South African also reported that the "hip drop" tackle is to be written explicitly into the foul play law and will draw at least a penalty kick.

Robinson framed the work around one priority: "Player welfare is at the heart of everything we do".