World Rugby has denied claims from the Prime Minister of Samoa that the country's rugby union team cannot afford to insure its players.

Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, who is also chairman of the Samoa Rugby Union, said this week that the organisation is "bankrupt".

He also said that there was no money to pay for player insurance and the head coach's salary ahead of matches against Scotland at Murrayfield on Sunday and England at Twickenham two weeks later.

A World Rugby statement, however, said the sport's governing body had increased their indirect investment in the Samoa Rugby Union’s high‑performance programme to about $3 million in 2017.

Scotland host Samoa at 3.30am Sunday while the Flying Fijians will take on Italy at 3am.

Source: RadioNZ