Former All Blacks star Sonny Bill Williams' multimillion-dollar Toronto Wolfpack deal is in doubt, due to visa issues that could prevent him from playing any further part in the Super League.
Wolfpack owner David Argyle has confirmed to The Mirror that Williams and six other overseas players don't have the appropriate visas to finish the UK season.
The Canadian club's seven overseas players are all on visas that limit them to six months a year in the UK - they have now expired, due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Argyle says the club has been in regular contact with the Rugby Football League (RFL) and Super League over the matter, because the Wolfpack cannot deal directly with the Home Office.
The Super League shut down in mid-March, but hopes to restart next month and Argyle says the issue could derail their maiden campaign.
"We have laid this out to Super League and the RFL today, and it's an issue that we can't keep kicking down the road," he has told The Mirror.
"It's always been a big issue for us and it hasn't been resolved. If it isn't resolved now, then I don't see any way we can participate in the rest of this season.
"It's been suggested to us that we could loan young players from other clubs, but we're not here to make up the numbers and we never have been. We didn't hire Brian McDermott as coach to do that.
"We also feel that it would be dangerous for us to fill our squad with other clubs' juniors, especially at a time when players might only have four days' rest between matches."
Former Kiwis international Chase Stanley and NZ Warriors forward Bodene Thompson are among the other overseas players contracted to the club.
But the club only has 24 contracted players, and the loss of Williams, Stanley, Thompson and the other overseas players would leave them with just 17 players to choose from.
"Player welfare is our highest priority and the anxiety that our players have every time they come back into the country needs to stop," Argyle adds.
"We joined this competition in the belief that we would have the full support of the RFL - and ultimately success in resolving this visa issue.
"This has been going on for three-and-a-half years now and this COVID situation has exacerbated it.
"I'm not blaming anybody. I can understand the bureaucratic position and we are only a very small issue for an organisation like the Home Office, but we've come to a crunch point now, where it needs to be resolved."
Since starting off in the third division of English rugby league, the Wolfpack base themselves in Manchester, due to the unavailability of their Lamport Stadium home in Toronto, before relocating to Canada for an extended period.
After the All Blacks' 2019 Rugby World Cup exit, Williams signed a two-year deal with the Wolfpack, earning a reported £5m (NZ$10m).
The Wolfpack failed to win any of their six matches before the coronavirus pandemic forced the season to be suspended.
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