Pro12

The Pro12 is an international professional league in Rugby Union. Due to its new main sponsor, it is referred to as RaboDirect Pro12 since the 2011/12 season. It take some four franchises from Ireland and Wales as well as two franchises from Scotland and Italy.

From the 2001 season until the 2005/06 season was named the league Celtic League. For sponsorship reasons, this was before the 2006/ 07 Magners League renamed because it was sponsored to the 2010/11 season by the Irish cider maker Magners. 2011 was followed by a re- name and change of sponsor, as already also two Italian teams played in the league since 2010, and the old contract expired sponsors.

Mode

In the Pro12 are in the league system in which each team in home and away matches playing against each other, the four participants in the play-offs as well as the participants of the highest European Cup Heineken Cup competition played out. The champion is determined at the end of normal time through the play-offs. All other teams who could not qualify for the Heineken Cup, will automatically take on the second European Cup Amlin Challenge Cup contest called part. There is also no promoted and relegated.

Below the Pro12 still exist, the national club leagues of each participating national associations Rugby Irish Rugby Football Union ( IRFU ), Scottish Rugby Union ( SRU ), Welsh Rugby Union ( WRU ) and Federazione Italiana Rugby ( FIR). This is the Principality Premiership (Wales ), the Scottish Hydro Electric Premiership, the All-Ireland League ( Ireland) and the Super 10 (Italy).

History

At the beginning of the season 1999/2000 the Welsh Premier Division was expanded with the integration of two Scottish teams to Welsh - Scottish League. Agreed in 2001, the Irish Rugby Football Union, the Scottish Rugby Union and the Welsh Rugby Union, the creation of a new competition in which the four Irish provinces are represented, and founded the Celtic League. The Welsh Association had previously performed with the English Rugby Football Union negotiations, but an Anglo- Welsh league did not materialize because there is no agreement on the number of teams involved could be achieved.

In the first season in 2001 was attended by 15 teams; the four Irish provincial teams, two from Scotland and all nine teams in the Welsh Premier Division. There were two groups of eight and seven teams that competed first in a round robin against each other. The top four of each group qualified for the knockout stages. 2002, initially parallel discharged Welsh - Scottish League was dissolved and devalued the Irish province championship. The Celtic League has also been increased by a Scottish team.

2003 the decision was made that the Celtic League should be the only professional league in the future. The Welsh Rugby Union was formed on the basis of nine Welsh clubs five independently operating professional franchises, thereby reducing the number of teams dropped to twelve. The 2003/04 season was seen little commercial success: Due to poor scheduling were missing in more than half of the rounds, most of the top players, as they arrived at the World Cup and Six Nations for use and had to conserve therefore.

Since the season 2004/ 05 the game calendar is better adapted to the international matches and tournaments. With the dissolution of the Celtic Warriors further concentration took place in Wales, so that only eleven teams were represented. The Welsh teams took part in the 2005, the first Anglo -Welsh Cup. This led to their exclusion from the Celtic League, as the Welsh Association had taken no account of the game calendar. There was even being considered for inclusion four teams from Italy as a replacement. New negotiations led to a change in game calendar, and the resumption of the Welsh teams before the season starts.

The Scottish Rugby Union announced the end of March 2007, the resolution of the Border Reivers team known. Thus, the Celtic League comprised from the 2007/ 08 season only ten teams. From the 2009/10 season the Celtic League was decided by play-offs at the end of normal time. The League was following the example of the English Premiership and the French Top 14, which will also be terminated by playoffs.

In the 2010/11 season through the league was expanded by two Italian teams. For this purpose, however, the teams had to meet certain financial and competitive standards. The Italian association founded to a new franchise, which was based in Viadana ( Aironi ). The Benetton Rugby Treviso existing club moved from the Italian league here. End of the 2012 season the team Aironi was disbanded, as they received no more license for financial reasons. It was replaced by the team Zebre.

Men

The following twelve teams are represented in the Pro12:

Master

• 2001: Leinster Rugby
• 2003/ 04: Scarlets
• 2004/ 05: Neath - Swansea Ospreys
• 2005/ 06: Ulster Rugby
• 2006/ 07: Ospreys
• 2007/ 08: Leinster Rugby
• 2009/10: Ospreys
• 2011/12: Ospreys
• 2012/13: Leinster Rugby
• 2013/14: