RUCK\u2019s WhatsApp community here<\/a>\u00a0and get the latest news sent straight to your messages.<\/p>\n\u201cSadly, due to scheduling conflicts, I can no longer continue with the STR podcast. I was originally contracted to do Season One of the show, which was due to finish at the end of this summer, but due to its popularity, it was extended, which unfortunately I am unable to commit to. I shall sorely miss it and all the wonderful crew but will be listening from the sidelines!\u201d<\/p>\n
A rough year off the pitch<\/p>\n
It hasn\u2019t been just podcast headaches. Dallaglio is\u00a0divorcing his wife, Alice, after nearly 20 years of marriage. <\/p>\n
Financially, he\u2019s been under pressure too: he faced a\u00a0\u00a3700,000 unpaid tax bill, and a bankruptcy petition was lodged against him \u2014 though a judge dismissed it after Dallaglio proposed a voluntary arrangement to settle his debts.<\/p>\n
Rugby legend<\/p>\n
Dallaglio\u2019s achievements on the field are legendary:<\/p>\n
Born\u00a010 August 1972\u00a0in Shepherd\u2019s Bush, London<\/p>\n
Played his\u00a0entire club career for Wasps\u00a0(1990\u20132008)<\/p>\n
Back-row specialist:\u00a0flanker \/ number eight<\/p>\n
Won\u00a085 caps for England\u00a0between 1995\u20132007<\/p>\n
Part of\u00a0England\u2019s 2003 World Cup-winning side<\/p>\n
Toured with the\u00a0British & Irish Lions\u00a0in 1997, 2001, and 2005<\/p>\n
Since retiring in 2008, Dallaglio has become a respected\u00a0pundit, businessman, and charity supporter, including work with\u00a0RugbyWorks\u00a0and a stint on Wasps\u2019 board.<\/p>\n
Dallaglio will be missed on STR, but fans can expect him to be tuning in from the sidelines.<\/p>\n
\u201cThree World Cup winners\u201d \u2013 Five England stars face financial ruin \u2014 two declared bankrupt<\/p>\n
The rugby world has been jolted by news that several former England internationals are facing serious financial struggles. <\/p>\n
Here\u2019s a closer look at four ex-stars whose fortunes have taken a difficult turn.<\/p>\n
\ud83d\udd34 JAMES HASKELL<\/p>\n
Former England star James Haskell is deep in financial trouble<\/p>\n
Court documents reveal he\u2019s locked in a legal dispute with his landlord over damage to property and equipment linked to his failed gym business.<\/p>\n
The ex-back rower, 40, launched a F45 gym in Bath back in 2017\u2014but the venture couldn\u2019t survive the pandemic. Now, his company\u00a0Hask 45 (Bath) Ltd\u00a0is nearly \u00a31 million in the red.<\/p>\n
According to the latest filings, the business is battling a legal claim over unpaid rent and costly repairs, with \u00a3927,738 in total liabilities\u2014\u00a3437,000 of which is owed to another of Haskell\u2019s own companies.<\/p>\n
Big plans to expand the gym chain to London and Manchester were scrapped after COVID hit.\u00a0Hask 45 (Manchester) Ltdclosed in March 2021, while\u00a0Hask 45 (Richmond) Ltd\u00a0followed in September 2022.<\/p>\n
Another of his companies,\u00a0Hask 45 Ltd, has also filed debts of \u00a3456,367 as of May 2024.<\/p>\n
It doesn\u2019t stop there\u2014two of Haskell\u2019s other sports-related businesses are also in the red.\u00a0James Haskell Health & Fitness Ltd\u00a0is down \u00a358,318, and\u00a0Rugby Connections UK Ltd\u00a0is \u00a368,855 in debt.<\/p>\n
All told, the former Wasps and England<\/p>\n
\ud83d\udd34 PHIL VICKERY<\/p>\n
World Cup Winner, Former England Captain \u2013 Bankrupt<\/p>\n
Vickery was a cornerstone of England\u2019s front row during the 2003 World Cup triumph and earned 73 caps for his country, including stints as captain. <\/p>\n
A two-time British & Irish Lions tourist (2001 and 2009), he also found domestic success with Gloucester and Wasps, winning the Premiership with both clubs. After retiring, he transitioned into business and media work, but his off-field ventures have now unraveled.<\/p>\n
Phil Vickery, part of England\u2019s iconic 2003 World Cup-winning squad, was officially declared bankrupt in\u00a0March 2024.<\/p>\n
The 48-year-old ex-prop filed a\u00a0debtor\u2019s petition\u00a0himself.<\/p>\n
He owed\u00a0\u00a397,806\u00a0to his own management company, Vix Limited \u2013 which is now in\u00a0liquidation.<\/p>\n
The company also racked up a further\u00a0\u00a371,000 in unpaid VAT, PAYE and NI contributions\u00a0to HMRC.<\/p>\n
His bankruptcy was approved on\u00a0February 21, and he resigned from at least four business roles around that time.<\/p>\n
A source close to the situation claimed Vickery had built up debts in the hundreds of thousands, affecting both business contacts and the tax office.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s endured a brutal run \u2013 a divorce, bankruptcy, and long spells grappling with mental health issues.<\/p>\n
Victory shouldn\u2019t come at this cost. And Vickery isn\u2019t afraid to call it out.<\/p>\n
\u201cVictory shouldn\u2019t cost this much, and the men and women who run this sport should be ashamed about the state some of the players who gave their lives to it are in now,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s not about finger pointing, it\u2019s not about blame, it\u2019s just trying to get across what reality is. And it\u2019s not all doom and gloom. We\u2019ve got some amazing guys in the squad. Incredibly successful people.\u201d<\/p>\n
But even the strongest have scars.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut everyone is fighting a battle somewhere. And if a big old oaf like me can be bothered to stand up and go: \u2018I\u2019m Phil Vickery, MBE, England captain, played in three Rugby World Cups, won the European Cup, duh-duh-duh-duh-duh, and actually I\u2019ve fucking battled and I\u2019ve struggled, and if that helps somebody, brilliant.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Now he\u2019s one of many former players taking legal action against World Rugby, the RFU, and WRU \u2013 accusing the powers-that-be of failing to protect them from the long-term damage of repeated brain trauma.<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew that I had issues with memory and brain,\u201d Vickery says. \u201cThen when I went for the scan, it came back and showed probable CTE [chronic traumatic encephalopathy], which I kind of knew before I\u2019d even had it done. I said that to the guy: \u2018I know something\u2019s wrong with me.\u2019 But I didn\u2019t want to do anything about it. There are lots of people out there now who are in denial, but have got issues and problems. I know it. But anyway, that\u2019s another story.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another story? Not really. It\u2019s the story of rugby today \u2014 and it\u2019s one that\u2019s impossible to ignore.<\/p>\n
CONTINUES ON PAGE TWO<\/p>\n
Like this:<\/p>\n
Like Loading…<\/p>\n
\t\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"2003 Rugby World Cup winner\u00a0Lawrence Dallaglio\u00a0has endured a brutal year \u2014 and now he\u2019s leaving the\u00a0Stick To Rugby\u00a0podcast…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":133377,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[5903,101,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-133376","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-rugby","8":"tag-rugby","9":"tag-sports","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133376","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=133376"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133376\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/133377"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=133376"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=133376"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=133376"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}