All Blacks v Ireland: World Rugby seriously considering central contracts for referees to combat consistency issues

World Rugby has been weighing up the introduction of a centrally-contracted group of referees to oversee international matches, Telegraph Sport can reveal.

The move, which is believed to be under serious consideration by the global governing body, comes in a bid to drive consistency in decision-making across high-profile tournaments such as the Six Nations and the World Cup, as well as one-off tests.

Last weekend brought another high-tackle controversy as Andrew Porter, the Ireland prop, was issued a yellow card by Wayne Barnes for a challenge that left Brodie Retallick, the New Zealand lock, with a broken cheekbone. Porter was cited and faced a hearing on Tuesday but avoided a ban because it was found that the incident "did not meet the red card threshold due to the absorbing nature of the tackle".

Andrew Porter has been cited for his high tackle on Brodie Retallick last weekend.

Not surprised, he was lucky to not be sent off for it in the match.

Retallick also suffered a broken cheekbone from the contact.#NZLvIRE pic.twitter.com/xohcgytQCd

— Jared Wright (@jaredwright17) July 18, 2022

Currently, most professional referees around the world are employed by their respective unions. The pay of Premiership officials, for instance, is bank-rolled by the Rugby Football Union and Premiership Rugby.

Those referees, including Barnes, work together to review their matches and fitness levels. They are appointed to international matches, usually after impressing in European fixtures, by World Rugby on the merit of consistent and assured performances in domestic competition.

Should they proceed with the idea of central contracts for international officials, World Rugby will be mindful of contract lengths they are able to award. It is most likely that they would have to work around World Cup cycles, so 2024 would appear to be a natural opportunity to introduce the initiative.

Such a move has been examined and debated internally over recent years and had been resurfacing prior to the July internationals.

Referee Wayne Barnes during the third test between the All Blacks and Ireland. Photo / Photosport

The possibility of training camps for international referees and constant dialogue between them would surely bring alignment in contentious areas such as the scrum, the breakdown and the contact area.

There is the question of ensuring match sharpness for selected referees between test match windows. Presumably, it would be straightforward to second them back to their home nation or even to foreign leagues.

Just last season, thanks to a collaboration between the Premiership and European Professional club Rugby (EPCR), Mathieu Raynal, the French referee, oversaw Harlequins' visit to London Irish in order to familiarise himself with those players ahead of the knockout rounds of the Champions Cup.

Ahead of the 2019 World Cup, a team of 23, comprising 12 referees, seven assistant referees and four television match officials (TMOs) were picked to take charge of the 43 matches at the tournament.