The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) has confirmed plans to "fast track" repayment of its multi-million pound debt relating the development of Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.

A new financial structure has been agreed following negotiations between the national governing body and Barclays Corporate, which is designed to enable the WRU to be debt-free by 2021. More than £60m was loaned by the WRU to help fund the Millennium Stadium project, although the new deal has reduced the debt from £32m to £21m. The organisation has also paid £5m to restructure an interest rate hedge.

WRU group chief executive Roger Lewis said: "This is a clear signal that we have now achieved a proper level of corporate confidence in the sound financial base of the group. "We work extremely hard to maximise our income and it is now right and proper for us to extend that ability into a renewed and rigorous formula to manage and control our debt."