Rugby Europe, the regional governing body for rugby union on the continent, has appointed Denmark’s Jens Aage Skare Nielsen as its new chief executive (CEO).
Nielsen had been interim chief executive of the organization since September 2025, after previous chief Florent Marty stepped down.
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Prior to that, Nielsen was regional partnership manager for Europe at the World Rugby global body, a role he took up in July 2023, after a first stint of over six years at European Rugby, where he had been a member of the board of directors, and chair of the regional organization’s development committee.
A former national team player and captain, he was also the president of the Danish Rugby Union from November 2014 through June 2023.
Professionally, since the early 1990s, the Dane has held numerous positions across the shipping and logistics giant A.P. Møller – Maersk.
As Rugby Europe is not responsible for the organization of the annual Six Nations tournament (contested by perhaps the six strongest Rugby Europe members), its top international competition is the Rugby Europe International Championships tournament, which consists of 35 teams across the ‘Championship’ and ‘Conference’ tiers.
Speaking on his now-permanent appointment to the role of Rugby Europe chief executive, Nielsen commented: “It is a great honor to be appointed CEO of Rugby Europe. Having served in the interim, I have seen firsthand the strong potential across our member unions.
“I look forward to building on the progress made and working closely with our partners to grow the game, strengthen our structures, and create more opportunities for rugby in every part of Europe.”
Rugby Europe said in a release that Nielsen will focus on the enhancement of the body’s relationship with World Rugby, as well as driving growth and development across both emerging and established rugby unions.
Janhein Pieterse, Rugby Europe's president, added: “Over the past eight months, [Nielsen] has demonstrated strong leadership, clear strategic thinking, and a deep commitment to the development of rugby across Europe.
“The board and I are confident that Jens is the right person to lead Rugby Europe at this important moment for the game in our region.”
Portugal emerged as winners of the 2025-26 edition, defeating Georgia in the final, with Romania falling to Spain in the bronze medal match.
