England head coach Steve Borthwick has made significant changes to his centrally contracted squad with just over a year remaining before the Rugby World Cup. He revealed the list of 25 players who will receive enhanced player contracts for the 2026-27 season, each valued at approximately £150,000.
Among the new recipients of elite contracts are Bath flanker Guy Pepper and Gloucester centre Seb Atkinson, who have both been rewarded with these deals for the first time. Other first-time recipients include prop Asher Opoku-Fordjour, lock Alex Coles, and scrum-half Jack van Poortvliet.
Several notable players have been left off the list, including flanker Ben Curry, utility back Elliot Daly, and wing Tom Roebuck. Additionally, Tom Willis, who is set to join a French club, is no longer eligible to represent England and therefore has not been awarded a contract. Bath centre Ollie Lawrence is also absent from the enhanced contract list.
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Players such as Exeter Chiefs backs Henry Slade and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, Bristol Bears hooker Ellis Genge, and Bath prop Will Stuart have retained their contracts. This group of 25 players forms the core of England’s preparations leading into the World Cup.
These enhanced contracts were introduced in 2024 under the Professional Game Partnership between the Rugby Football Union (RFU) and Premiership clubs. This agreement empowers Borthwick with full authority over medical and conditioning decisions regarding these players. The contracts provide a fixed annual payment from the RFU, differing from previous pay-per-match arrangements. For reference, non-centrally contracted players receive an approximate match fee of £21,000, while those with enhanced contracts earn this plus an additional £7,000 per game for image rights, on top of their fixed annual salary.
England experienced a strong run of victories in 2025 but faced challenges during this year’s Six Nations, managing only one win. The team recovered somewhat in July, winning two of their three matches in the Nations Championship.
Looking ahead, Borthwick’s squad will face Australia, Japan, and New Zealand in November, marking the northern hemisphere leg of the inaugural Nations Championship.
The full list of players awarded enhanced contracts includes:
- Seb Atkinson (Gloucester Rugby)
- Fin Baxter (Harlequins)
- Ollie Chessum (Leicester Tigers)
- Alex Coles (Northampton Saints)
- Luke Cowan-Dickie (Sale Sharks)
- Tom Curry (Sale Sharks)
- Ben Earl (Saracens)
- Immanuel Feyi-Waboso (Exeter Chiefs)
- George Ford (Sale Sharks)
- Tommy Freeman (Northampton Saints)
- George Furbank (Harlequins)
- Ellis Genge (Bristol Bears)
- Jamie George (Saracens)
- Joe Heyes (Leicester Tigers)
- Maro Itoje (Saracens)
- George Martin (Saracens)
- Alex Mitchell (Northampton Saints)
- Asher Opoku-Fordjour (Sale Sharks)
- Guy Pepper (Bath Rugby)
- Henry Pollock (Northampton Saints)
- Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs)
- Fin Smith (Northampton Saints)
- Marcus Smith (Harlequins)
- Will Stuart (Bath Rugby)
- Jack van Poortvliet (Leicester Tigers)