April 10 – An agreement is reached to replace the current European club championships, the top-level Heineken Cup and second-tier European Challenge Cup, with a new structure. Details are as follows:[2]
The Heineken Cup will be replaced by the new European Rugby Champions Cup, with the number of competing teams reduced from 24 to 20.
The European Challenge Cup will have a minor name change to European Rugby Challenge Cup. It will continue to involve 20 clubs.
A completely new third-tier Qualifying Competition will be introduced. It will involve top clubs from Italy's National Championship of Excellence, plus clubs from European nations outside of those involved in the Six Nations. Two teams will advance from this competition to the Challenge Cup.
31 July – The International Rugby Board announces that it and Global Rugby Enterprises Limited, owner of the International Rugby Hall of Fame, have reached an agreement to merge the International Hall into the IRB Hall of Fame. The merger is to take effect by the end of 2014, and will see all 37 members of the International Hall not previously honoured by the IRB enter what will eventually become the World Rugby Hall of Fame (see 28 August item below for more details).[3]
28 August – The IRB announces that effective 19 November, it will change its name to World Rugby.[4]
