IRB to ban players using mobile phones during Rugby World Cup

Rugby players and officials participating in the World Cup scheduled next year in England will not be allowed to carry mobile phones during match days, as International Rugby Board is planning to enforce a blanket ban on using the gadgets.

The move, according to sources, is aimed at protecting the tournament from match-fixing or corruption claims.

In the recently held IRB regulations committee meeting the issue was discussed and members understood to have agreed that both match officials and players should not be allowed to use mobile phones even for texting during match days. Members also discussed ways and means to monitor the betting pattern.

Addressing media, Alan Gilpin, head of the Rugby World Cup, said, "The ban of mobile phones is under consideration. The move is in line with protecting the integrity of the game. It is the matter of taking preventive measures before anything untoward happens.”

IRB’s 2012 regulations put some strictures on players and officials on betting and sharing confidential information about match/matches to anyone including their family members.

Denying that the ban of mobile phones on players and officials will be overly draconian, Brett Gosper, chief executive of the IRB said: "We don't want to be anything draconian on players or put some strictures on their basic mobile phone use, but we don’t want to take any risks in the gambling and corruption areas."