The suspicion amongst the English clubs is that the RFU are going to impose regional rugby upon the Premiership clubs in the next couple of years and enter these regions in the Heineken Cup.

To counteract that, and to have a greater say in the running of the ERC in general, PRL have asked the RFU to hand over half their shareholding and voting rights in the ERC to them before the start of next season, something that PRL claim the RFU promised them in meetings last October.

The FFR have already given the French clubs' association, LNR, slightly less than half of their shareholding and four out of their five votes on the ERC board, while the Italian Rugby Federation will do likewise with their clubs in the coming weeks.

>> So why are the French clubs threatening to withdraw?

France and England are the only two serious rugby countries in the world where the club game is completely independent from the international game, and both are sticking together because of that.

In New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Ireland, Wales and Scotland, all players are centrally contracted.

Players in these countries play for provinces or regional teams owned by their international unions.

In France and England, however, the clubs are completely independent from the governing unions and receive no funding from them bar the compensation handed over for allowing players to participate in international rugby.

The big fear is that if either England or France bows to regional rugby in the coming years, the other countries will be forced to follow their lead.

>> What about French claims that they can't fit in the Heineken Cup because of domestic fixture congestion caused by the World Cup?

That appears to be a smokescreen. If the French league clubs were fully happy with the Heineken Cup and the way it was being organised by the ERC, they'd find room in their admittedly crowded calendar for the competition next season.

>> What's going to happen now?

Although both LNR and PRL have confirmed that they won't play in the competition next season, there's little doubt that the Celtic unions will be trying everything possible to change their minds over the coming months.

However whatever about the 2008/9 season, it would appear that next season's Heineken Cup will not take place in any shape or form.