Bristol lock in Pat Lam with enormous contract

Bristol Bears Director of Rugby Pat Lam has agreed a new five-year contract with the club, in one of the longest deals of its kind given to any current DoR.

Lam, who lead Bristol to promotion before cementing their place as a Gallagher Premiership title contender, is now contracted until the end of the 2027/2028 season.

"It’s an absolute honour to continue as Director of Rugby at Bristol Bears," said Lam. "To have the opportunity to work with a great group of people, and to represent our community with pride and love is very special.

"I am grateful to have the continued support of Steve, Jon and Chris and I’m thankful that they have entrusted me to keep leading the Bristol Bears along our journey of Inspiring Our Community Through Rugby Success.

"While we have come a long way in the last four years, I am really excited by what is still to come as we challenge all of us individually and collectively to raise the bar every day.

"I genuinely believe that now we have all our Men, Women and Academy aligned as one club, we are poised to bring a lot of inspiration and success, on and off the field, for many years ahead and I feel very humbled to be a part of it."

The five-year deal will kick once his current deal to the end of 2022/23 completes.

In 2019, he led Bears to ninth position – the highest points tally for a newly promoted club in twelve years. A year later, Bristol clinched a third placed finish in the Gallagher Premiership and secured their first major silverware since 1983 with a European Challenge Cup Final victory over Toulon.

Then, last season, Bristol recorded their highest ever regular season position, topping the table and making the Champions Cup knockout stages, while Lam was awarded Global Reach Director of Rugby of the Year.

Owner Steve Lansdown said: "What Pat and his team have achieved in a short space of time at Bristol Bears is excellent, but it’s not just the way that the team have performed on the field, it’s the culture and standards he has set to continually drive the organisation forward.

"Bristol Bears are on an exciting journey, and we are delighted to have Pat at the forefront of that. He has embraced the rebrand and our vision of ‘Inspiring Our Community Through Rugby Success’. From the Academy to our Women’s team, Pat lives and breathes our mission every day. He has given the city a rugby club we can be proud of."

Chairman Chris Booy said: "It’s no surprise he would have the interest of every top club in the world, so it’s testament to the ambition of the Bears that Pat was eager to stay."