Leicester are considering an audacious bid to recruit Australia head coach Michael Cheika as director of rugby after the World Cup — but he won't come cheap.

The Tigers have been plunged into a Premiership relegation battle after slumping to 10th in the table under first-year head coach Geordan Murphy.

The club's hierarchy have made enquiries about bringing in Cheika, but are now weighing up the cost of doing so, which one source indicated would be 'prohibitive'.

Leicester are considering an audacious bid to recruit Australia head coach Michael Cheika

The Tigers have been plunged into a Premiership relegation battle after slumping to 10th

The 52-year-old has been in charge of the Wallabies since 2014, guiding them to the last World Cup final just a year later.

Australia have struggled in recent times, but Cheika has been backed by his union to lead the team at the World Cup in Japan later this year, after which he is expected to leave his post and look for a new challenge.

Crucially, Cheika has coached in Europe before with notable success.

At Leinster, he won the Celtic League title in 2008 and the Heineken Cup a year later — beating Leicester in the final at Murrayfield.

His subsequent two-year stint at Stade Francais did not yield a trophy, but he did lead the Parisian club to the 2011 European Challenge Cup final.