Rowan Ackerman could be ready to leave Premier League strugglers Gloucester despite committing only the back row to his future and signing a new contract with the Cherry and White's in February.
Ackerman, 28, has played for Gloucester since leaving the Lions in his native South Africa in 2017, and was expected to return to his homeland before signing a new contract but has since attracted interest from Japan.
His father Johan, who faces an uncertain future, has just led Urayasu De Rox to promotion back to the J-League and could be in contention if he stays while Yokohama Cannon Eagles are also in the market for the back row.
The Bulls are in advanced talks to re-sign Cento Mangezi, who is set to leave Glasgow Warriors when his contract expires at the end of next month.
East London-born Mangezi, 29, played for the Southern Kings and Cheetahs before joining the Bulls and Blue Bulls and was part of the side that won the Currie Cup in 2021.
The 6'6″ mangesi can also play as a blindside winger and has had a series of injury problems since moving to Scotstoun but has made 12 appearances since returning from a serious knee injury in November.
Wallaby lock Will Skelton is close to reaching an agreement to extend his stay with Top 14 Big Guns LA Rochelle, where he has made his home for the past four years.
Skelton, 32, has made 16 appearances this season and helped Ronan O'Gara's side win back-to-back European Champions Cup titles in 2022 and 2023, reaching the final in his first season with the club in 2021.
The former Wallabies skipper also won the Champions Cup with Saracens in 2017 and 2019 and spent four years in north London before leaving after being relegated to the Championship following the salary cap scandal.
A Premiership Rugby manager has been fighting for his job, and his fears intensified after he made a drunken rant from one of his club's senior executives during a Premier League awards ceremony in London this week.
Whispers arrive Secret Fessler Towers That the CEO had enjoyed an alcohol-free evening before venting his thoughts about his club president to corresponding numbers at rival clubs.
The manager in question has been on the hook for weeks, but the club will be forced to spend money it cannot afford to pay significant sums for the remaining years of the contract.
Biarritz could get rid of most, if not all, of their foreign squad after a disappointing season that saw them finish 14th in the Pro D2 table, five points behind Rouen, who finished last in the table.
The Basque Country side who have just appointed Stade Francais skills coach Boris Bouhraoua as their new player coach have informed that they will no longer pay for image rights as they look to tighten their belts.
It means former Premier League stars Jonathan Joseph, Zak Kibberig, Billy Searle, Alfie Beach and Charlie Matthews could all be made surplus to requirements and forced to seek alternative work for next season.
Rugby Australia is in talks with Melbourne Rebels players about their futures as the Eagles continue to soar, looking to pick the bones of the troubled Super Rugby franchise.
Officials, including the Australian Rugby Union's new director of high performance, Peter Horne, held one-on-one meetings with players, where they were asked where they would prefer to live and work.
A financial rescue plan for The Rebels is on the table, but it remains unclear whether The Rebels will regain their licence, leaving players whose contracts expired at the end of this year and who are still under contract worried about their future.
Premier League scouts have been keeping an eye on Georgian players Dato Abodelishvili and Pashuki Chumbadze, although both players will struggle to obtain a work permit to play in the UK.
Lucheid Abudelishvili, 23, and fellow front-rower Pachuki Chumbadze, 22, both play for the Black Lions and have been tipped to follow in the footsteps of Exeter Chiefs' former club Nika Abudelishvili.
But they are short of the required number of matches to gain a work permit, and Richard Cockerill is likely to field the strongest possible side in a tough summer series of matches against Fiji, Japan and Australia, which will not help the duo.
Stade Francais look set to end their search for a new fly-half by snapping up France international Louis Carbonel even though he has another year to run out of his contract at relegation-threatened Montpellier.
Stade, who lost Joris Segunds to Bayonne when his contract expires this summer, is in discussions with Montpellier over Carbonell, who has been attracting interest from his former club Toulon.
Carbonell scored 186 runs in 25 matches for Montpellier, winning the last of his six caps against Australia in July 2021, falling down the pecking order, and will be hoping the move will revive his international ambitions.
The Scarlets have raided Nottingham for qualified Welsh full-back Ellis Mee, who has just been named Player of the Year by fans and players in the Championship squad.
Mee, 20, who can play as a full-back or a winger, is Dwayne Bale's third new signing for next season following the arrivals of Toyota Cheetahs hooker Marnus van der Merwe and Exeter Chiefs' Alec Hepburn.
Mee was combining his rugby career with studies at Nottingham Trent University and only joined Nottingham at the start of the season and quickly caught the attention of scouts from the United Premier League and Championship Rugby League.
South Africa's Keenan Knox will return to play in France next season after completing his move to CS Burgoyne Jaglio after seven years in Ireland with Munster.
Munster announced in January that Knox, who was spotted playing in a school match by then-chief executive Garrett Fitzgerald, had found his opportunities limited and would leave when his contract expires this summer.
He chose to move to Burgoyne, which plays in the national third division.
