World Rugby have announced that a new tackle height will be brought into the community game from 1st July 2026.
The law change was announced following a meeting of the World Rugby Council in Dublin.
The tackle height in the community game will be reduced to the sternum or below in order to try and protect the player with the ball.
Unions will be able to lower the tackle height even further for specific levels and age-grades to the waist.
There were over 150,000 tackles studied as part of the research that showed a positive impact on player safety.
What have World Rugby said about the law change?
World Rugby shared, “The decision, taken by Council today in Dublin, Ireland, comes after extensive evaluation of trials run across 10 national member unions involving more than 150,000 studied tackles demonstrated positive player behaviour.
The trials showed that a lower legal tackle height was effective in reducing the chances of upright tackles occurring, which are the most likely to cause avoidable head impacts.”
The impact of head impacts has been heavily researched by World Rugby over recent years and this seems like a positive step in the right direction to teach appropriate tackle technique at a younger age.
Welcoming Council’s decision World Rugby Chairman Brett Robinson said, “I would like to thank all the unions and academics and most importantly players and referees who took part in the trials that have helped us to reach this point.
The World Rugby Council brought in a range of further trial motions into law to the professional and elite game.
World Rugby Council also voted to move a number of other successful trials into full law. These included:
- The scrum brake foot, which reduces axial loading (pressure on heads and necks) in the scrum
- Restrictions on water carriers entering the field of play
- Confirming the role of the Television Match Official as a formal part of the officiating team
- Allowing elite competitions the option of using 20-minute red cards if they choose to.
ReadRugbyUnion reacts:
Any law ruling that aims for the protection of players has to be seen as a positive. The reduction in tackle height, particularly for younger age groups, will actually get players to perfect a stronger tackle technique, and when they reach a level where they are allowed to tackle higher, they will not be as reliant on their size or brute strength to complete a tackle.
At younger age levels, it is typically the biggest player who is able to stop the man. This reliance on size doesn’t actually prepare young players for when they progress to play against better opposition or for the senior game, where they will come up against players of all ages who are also bigger.
