Bill Sweeney has vowed to fight on in his role as chief executive of the Rugby Football Union despite calls for his sacking over a pay and bonus scandal.
The RFU has agreed to hold a special AGM, where Sweeney will face moves to end his tenure, after the Guinness Six Nations.
Annual accounts published in November revealed that Sweeney received a salary of £1.1m for the 2023-24 financial year, made up of an increased salary of £742,000 and a bonus of £358,000.
Further bonuses totaling nearly £1m were paid to five other executives even as the RFU reported a record operating loss of £37.9m and made 42 redundant.
Speaking on The Good, The Bad and The Rugby podcast, Sweeney said: “I definitely have the energy (to carry on). I mean, the easiest thing to do now would be to leave.
“The easiest thing now would be to say: ‘Right, I’ve had enough of this stuff. I’ve had enough of this political crap that’s going on. It’s worse than the succession. I’ve had enough of all that stuff. Why bother?’
“I can’t do it. I wouldn’t do it. It’s just unbearable to think that I would just reject that easy option.
“We’ve got some great stuff that we’ve developed and we’re just starting to get into the game. I know what’s going on behind the scenes. I know who’s involved.
“I’ll stick it out. If the board tells me to go, that’s fine. If they don’t tell me to go and they believe I’m doing a good job – and I believe I’m doing a good job – then I’ll stay.
“And if that means enduring a lot more caning and firing, then fine, I’ll stay.”
Sweeney also revealed he wanted to delay the controversial bonus payment that led to calls for his removal, but couldn’t.
“I knew it was going to be a big problem, long before it was over,” he added. “I wanted to delay it, so I said, ‘why are we paying for this in ’23-24? Why don’t we delay it to ’25 or ’27?’
“The problem is that once you declare such an incentive program, it is written in your annual reports, and it has already been done, you calculate for it year after year.
“Even if it’s paid later, it still has to be posted and it has to be taken in that year, so that wouldn’t change.”
Sweeney didn’t shy away from the weight of the current scrutiny on his organization, but suggested the problems could run even deeper.
Asked if he thought the RFU was fit for purpose, he said: “I think it is, but I think changes are needed.”
