Officials named on new Premier 15s board

By Emily Liles
31/10/22

The RFU, alongside a wider working group, is delighted to announce the appointment of Belinda Moore as the Chief Executive, and Genevieve Shore as the Chair of Women’s Premier 15 Limited (WP15Ltd), a new company established to oversee the organisation and management of the Allianz Premier 15s competition from the 2023/24 season.

As Chief Executive, Belinda will hold primary responsibility and accountability for driving the development of the business and ensuring the vision, to inspire a generation of players and fans through world-class club competition, is realised. She will lead and manage the company in line with its strategic and operational priorities to ensure Allianz Premier 15s becomes the most competitive, progressive and sustainable domestic competition in the world.

Commenting on the appointment Belinda Moore said: “I am hugely excited by the opportunity of leading Women’s Premier 15 Limited alongside Genevieve. There has never been a better time for women’s sport in this country and we fully intend to capitalise on the interest and appeal that currently exists to ensure we drive women’s rugby forward.”

“A key element of that will be to deliver a new approach for women’s sport, driving full engagement with our athletes and operating with a new mindset which thinks differently across the board from communications, to the calendar, and all our competitions. There is so much potential to make a real difference for women and girls across the sporting landscape and I cannot wait to get started.”

Belinda was identified as the perfect candidate due to her blend of experience from broadcast media, commercial partnerships, event management, her time leading athlete engagement at the British Olympic Association and her current role as Programme Director for the European Tour Group. She is also Director of Girls’ Rugby and Head Coach of the U7’s at Wimbledon RFC. She will take up her role in January 2023.

In her role as Chair, Genevieve will be focused on driving the new company to achieve its exciting and ambitious vision for the future. She will support Belinda in the provision of strategic leadership to deliver long-range goals, strategies, plans and policies.

Shore said: “I am very much looking forward to taking on this new role as Chair of Women’s Premier 15 Limited and supporting Belinda as we embark on the very exciting next phase of this competition. A core focus for the Board will be to deliver financial sustainability for the league and its clubs through the achievement of ambitious financial and commercial growth and a shared vision with all our stakeholders and partners.

“Whilst that and the rugby remain our principal ambitions, we also recognise the wider role we must play as female leaders within sport and business. We must stand up for what we believe and challenge behaviours and opinions that jeopardise our position and alongside our players and pioneers, we will be proud to do so.”

Former England international and member of the 1994 World Cup winning team, Genevieve has extensive experience serving in Non-Executive Director roles on several Boards from a wide range of industries. She has served on the RFU Board of Directors since 2017 and is the current Chair of the North Highland Initiative.

Sue Day, RFU’s Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer commented: “This is brilliant news for Allianz Premier 15s moving forward into a new era. There has been a lot of work to date to get to this point, with the clubs and RFU working together to create the league and establish the foundations from which we can now build.”

“It is without doubt a very exciting time for women’s sport and with both Belinda and Genevieve leading the way, Women’s Premier 15 Limited is in very capable hands. I am excited to see what they achieve together. I would like to place on record our thanks to Genevieve for her contribution to the RFU Board over the last five years and wish both her and Belinda well for the future with Women’s Premier 15 Limited.”

Alex Teasdale, RFU Head of Women’s Game, added: “With the formation of Women’s Premier 15 Limited and the appointments of both Belinda and Genevieve, we are now in an enviable position to be able to sustainably grow the game at every level.

“The scope of work for Women’s Premier 15 Limited will extend beyond the competitions to work alongside the RFU, Premiership Rugby and the wider rugby community to improve the overall quality of play and a coherent player pathway from grassroots through to the elite competition. The first step has been to align the club and international calendar to support the production of world class talent for the Red Roses.”