Saracens insist 'no offer has been made' to Ireland head coach Andy Farrell following 'disrespectful' speculation
Published 27/02/2026 at 09:03 GMT
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Saracens have insisted that "no offer has been made" to Andy Farrell following reports they had offered the Ireland head coach a role after the 2027 Rugby World Cup. The PREM club have labelled the speculation "as disrespectful", both to Farrell and to Brendan Ventor, who will become director of rugby at the end of the season. Farrell spent four years at the club as a player between 2005 and 2009.
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Saracens have denied "disrespectful" speculation that they have offered Ireland head coach Andy Farrell a role at the club.
The Irish Independent reported that the 50-year-old has been approached by the Gallagher PREM side over a potential return to the club following the 2027 Rugby World Cup.
The approach reportedly involved a deal worth more than £1 million per year for Farrell, but Saracens insist that "no offer has been made".
"Saracens would like to address recent media speculation linking Andy Farrell with a coaching role at the club," the London club said in a statement.
"Andy has not discussed his future with anyone on the board or ownership group of Saracens and we can categorically state, despite numerous reports to the contrary in the press, that no offer has been made to Andy."
Saracens director of rugby Mark McCall will be replaced at the end of this season by Brendan Venter, who previously held the position between 2009 and 2011.
"The misguided reporting is disrespectful to Brendan Venter," Saracens said. " It is also disrespectful to Andy and the IRFU."
Farrell played for Saracens between 2005 and 2009, while his son, Owen Farrell, rejoined the club last summer after a season with Racing 92.
"Andy has long-standing and deep personal ties to Saracens," the statement added.
"He represented the club as a player between 2005 and 2009 and remains closely affiliated with the club through his family, as the father of Owen Farrell, one of the most significant players in Saracens’ history and a current member of the squad.
"Given Andy’s close relationship with Saracens, the club looks forward to welcoming him to more home fixtures once the Six Nations Championship has concluded."
Farrell became Ireland's head coach in 2019, taking over from Joe Schmidt, having held an assistant position since 2016.
He guided them to a Six Nations Grand Slam in 2023 before leading a successful defence of their title a year later.
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Ireland, as the top-ranked team in the tournament, reached the quarter-finals of the 2023 World Cup under Farrell, where they narrowly lost to New Zealand.
There was a brief interruption in Farrell’s duties as he led the British and Irish Lions’ tour of Australia last summer, guiding them to a 2-1 series win.
Ireland sit third in this year’s Six Nations after three games, having claimed victories over England and Italy after defeat against France.
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