England's World Cup bid blow

England's bid to host the 2015 Rugby World Cup has been thrown into doubt by a demand for a guarantee of more than £70million to stage the event.

The International Rugby Board have changed the bidding from a profit-sharing system to an unprecedented guarantee which leaves England, the strongest financial Union in the world, reconsidering their bid.

Hosts only receive money from ticket sales while all other World Cup contracts, such as TV, go direct to the IRB and it is feared the £70m demand would leave Unions struggling to meet the costs.

Francis Baron, the RFU chief executive, today admitted England could not bid without Government support.

He explained: "The profit-share system is the best way to handle a World Cup and that's the way it should be operated.

"By asking for a large financial guarantee it requires Government support to make a bid. It would be difficult for us to bid without that kind of support and we will be making this clear at the International Board meeting next month.

"To bid for the 2015 tournament would be a massive financial risk."

England will open talks with Wales, Ireland and Scotland next week to discover if a joint bid makes financial sense but it is clear the major unions want the World Cup organisers to go back to profit-sharing. Bids to host the event must be made by next May.