He added: "We are keen to move forward with a deal which sees us having more money and gives us an opportunity to be more competitive with the rest of the league.

"There's a lot to happen over the next few months and hopefully we will get an agreement that gives us a solid footing to progress in terms of budget over the coming years."

The Welsh government provided an 18m loan to the WRU in 2022, which it passed on to the four professional sides.

But on her first day in the job in January, WRU chief executive Abi Tierney received a letter from the Joint Supporters Group (JSG) Cymru urging the governing body to ease that financial pressure on the clubs.

Now the WRU could respond by taking on the remaining balance of that Welsh government debt, believed to be about 14m.

But that would almost certainly come at a price which is likely to take the shape of handing over part ownership of the regions and potentially control of when, where and how often players play.