Steve Borthwick will not be handed England contract extension beyond 2027 World Cup for now - as RFU chief insists it is 'premature' to discuss new deal despite 11-game winning streak

Steve Borthwick won’t be handed a contract extension as England head coach for now despite him leading the national team to an 11-game winning streak. 

Borthwick’s England have had a fine 2025, losing only to Ireland in their 12 matches. 

Victories over Australia, Fiji, New Zealand and Argentina this month sealed a first autumn clean sweep since 2017. 

Borthwick’s current deal runs through to and past the 2027 World Cup. He has been open in his long-term goal of wanting to win that tournament in Australia. But on Tuesday, RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney said he has no plans to discuss fresh terms with Borthwick. 

The RFU extended the contracts of Borthwick’s two predecessors Eddie Jones and Stuart Lancaster ahead of the 2019 and 2015 World Cups respectively. 

‘His (Borthwick’s) contract goes through to 2027,’ Sweeney said.

‘We are obviously delighted with the direction it is going in. We back this coaching group and are really happy with it. 

‘We haven’t got into any discussions about post 2027 and we are not planning to in the foreseeable future. It’s premature.

‘It is really important to keep our feet on the ground. Steve is good at that. He’s got a lot of depth now and a lot of selection options to go with. Steve wants to get the maximum out of this squad.’ 

Sweeney’s position is perhaps influenced by the past.

Both Jones and Lancaster signed contract extensions in 2020 and 2014 respectively, only for the RFU to sack them soon after.

Sweeney was speaking as he confirmed the RFU’s latest accounts for the year 2024/25 which showed a net loss of £1.9million and a total rugby investment of £94m across both the professional and community games. The RFU’s revenue was £228m.

Sweeney insisted he had no regrets over the previous year’s RFU accounts which saw him take a controversial bonus and a total payment of £1.1million. The fall-out from the bonus scandal saw him only just cling to his position in charge.

English rugby’s top operator was paid £705,000 for the last financial year.

He said he was confident of getting the approval needed to greenlight a £650m Twickenham redevelopment. In order to do so, the RFU needs extra revenue and has applied to host 15 extra non-sporting events at its home each year in order to try and generate it.

But doing so requires approval from Richmond Borough Council.

Sweeney did confirm contract talks have begun with England women’s head coach John Mitchell. The New Zealander guided the Red Roses to World Cup glory on home soil this year but his deal expires at the end of the 2026 Women’s Six Nations in May.

Mitchell has been working with PREM Rugby strugglers Gloucester but only on a short-term basis and in an unpaid capacity.