World Rugby lowers legal tackle height in community rugby

World Rugby Council, meeting in Dublin, has approved a lower legal tackle height for community rugby, set to take effect from 1 July 2026 for seasons starting after that date. The law allows Unions to choose either the waist or base of the sternum as the maximum tackle height, following two-year trials across 10 national member unions that studied over 150,000 tackles. The change is driven by player welfare, as lower tackle heights were found to reduce upright tackles, which are most likely to cause avoidable head impacts.