Australian champions Melbourne Storm have been stripped of two National Rugby League (NRL) titles and fined A$1.6 million (US$1.4 million) for salary cap breaches, the NRL said yesterday.
NRL chief executive David Gallop told reporters the Storm club would also not be allowed to accrue any premiership points in this year’s season as part of its punishment.
Gallop said the Storm had been found guilty of cheating over the league’s salary cap by at least A$1.7 million over five years and had been stripped of the titles they won in the 2007 season and last year.
He said the league’s investigations had revealed the Storm had maintained a dual contract system, with the club confirming on Wednesday that side letters promising extra payments were stored in a secret file.
“The club ... will be forced to return the A$1.1 million in prize money with the prize money being distributed evenly among the other 15 [NRL] clubs,” Gallop said.
Gallop said Melbourne’s efforts to conceal payments meant they were able to attract and retain some of rugby’s biggest stars.
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