2015 Rugby World Cup

2015 Rugby World Cup

Tournament details
Host nations	England  Wales
Dates	18 September 2015 – 31 October 2015
← 2011 2019 →

The 2015 Rugby World Cup is scheduled to be the eighth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial rugby union world championship. The tournament is scheduled to be hosted by England from 18 September to 31 October 2015.^[1] Cardiff's 74,500-seater Millennium Stadium in Wales will also be used. England's world famous Twickenham Stadium will host the final.^[2] England was chosen to host the competition in July 2009, beating rival bids from Italy, Japan and South Africa.

Four countries submitted formal bids to host the tournament, with England being recommended by the competition's organisers to the International Rugby Board (IRB).^[3] RWCL Chairman Bernard Lapasset revealed the result on 28 July 2009 at IRB headquarters in the Irish capital Dublin.^[4]

Bids

Submission of interest

The International Rugby Board requested that any member unions wishing to host this tournament or the 2019 Rugby World Cup should indicate their interest by 15 August 2008. This would be purely to indicate interest; no details had to be provided at this stage. A record ten unions indicated interest in hosting the 2015 and/or the 2019 events. The 2015 tournament received interest from Argentina,^[5] Australia, England, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Russia, Scotland, South Africa and Wales. Russia withdrew in February 2009 in order to concentrate on bidding for the 2013 Rugby World Cup Sevens,^[6] Australia and Ireland withdrew in spring 2009 due to financial reasons,^[7][8] while Scotland also withdrew in April 2009 after they were unable to secure co-hosting partners for the tournament.^[9] Wales was the last nation to officially pull out after they failed to submit a bid by the final submission date of 8 May 2009.^[10] However, the Welsh Rugby Union backed England's bid for the event and some games will be played at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.^[2]

England

In September 2007, The Guardian reported that the Rugby Football Union had decided to submit a bid. It was also claimed that the bid had a very strong chance of success due to the IRB's belief that the 2011 tournament might make a loss, therefore making it particularly important to ensure a profit, which is considered a strong point of England hosting.^[11] BBC News reported in February 2009 that the intent was for a solo bid from the RFU, but with the possibility of some matches being played in Scotland, Wales or Ireland.^[12] It was hoped that the 2015 World Cup would add to Britain's "Decade of Sport" (including the 2012 Summer Olympics). To add to the list even further, The Football Association had placed a bid to host the 2018 FIFA World Cup, however this bid was not successful. The Rugby Football League will also host the 2013 Rugby League World Cup. The chief executive of the Rugby Football Union, Francis Baron, said that the tournament will target sales of 3 million tickets.

On 28 July 2009, it was confirmed by the International Rugby Board (IRB) that England had fought off rival bids from South Africa and Italy and would host the 2015 Rugby World Cup, while Japan would host the 2019 event. The IRB voted 16-10 in favour of rubber-stamping the recommendation from Rugby World Cup Ltd (RWCL) that England and Japan should be named hosts.^[4]

Italy

The pledge of the bid was a promise declaring that Italy wanted to host "For the Enlargement of the Frontiers of Our Sport". It was a carefully planned slogan relevant to the current landscape of World Cup rugby, given that 2007 was the first time that the Rugby World Cup was hosted primarily by a non-English-speaking country. The Italian bid offered the largest cities and stadiums in the country and promised a fast domestic train system to ensure visitors easy access to the games and between cities.

The Italian Rugby Federation (FIR) also included the importance of the history of Italy, the population and the growth of rugby since Italy joined the 6 Nations in 2000 as reasons for hosting a World Cup. The success of the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France has been referred to by the FIR as a key for its bidding and for why it should host. Fans from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales went to matches in France in large numbers as did thousands of UK-based South Africans, Australians and New Zealanders and Italian- and Spanish-based Argentinians. Italy was therefore guaranteed of receiving a massive number of visitors, which was projected to be larger than what France received as the profile of the Rugby World Cup continues to grow.

Planned stadiums

The Stadio Olimpico in Rome had been selected as the venue to host the final and the first match of the tournament. It hosted the 1990 Football World Cup final and has a capacity larger than that used at Stade de France for the 2007 Rugby World Cup final. Milan and Naples were included as the other super sized venues. The entire list was a selection of large stadiums spread across the country. Stade Vélodrome in Marseille, France was also included as the tenth proposed venue.

Former Italy fly half Diego Dominguez stated his desire to campaign on behalf of an Italian bid for 2015.^[13] An Italian bid to host the Rugby World Cup in either 2015 or 2019 was confirmed on 20 July 2008, with FIR president Giancarlo Dondi saying, 'It's a new cornerstone in the development of Italian rugby of which the whole movement should be proud.' Rugby has been growing increasingly popular in Italy in recent years, with improved crowds at both international matches and the domestic Super 10 competition. Most recently, the Magners League in the Celtic nations, now known as Pro12, opened the door to Italian involvement, with two Italian teams entering the league for the 2010–11 season.

Japan

Japan was seen as a favourite for 2015 Rugby World Cup^[14] after finishing runner-up in the bidding for the 2011 event - but eventually won the 2019 Rugby World Cup. Japan is seen as having a lot to offer in terms of growth in the key Asian market, and their experience in co-hosting the successful 2002 FIFA World Cup is seen as a boost. Also attractive to the IRB is that rugby in Japan has a developing following and player numbers larger than some of the Six Nations. In fact, it has 126,000 registered players and this, in addition to its population of 127 million, its vast economy and its ability to place rugby before a new Asian audience are what have made it the front-runner for hosting rights. The Top League is a showcase for Japanese rugby and there is excitement about Japan's entry into RWC. Japan is a developed nation with a sophisticated tourism sector, with sporting facilities and infrastructure already in place and ready for use in the tournament.

The Japan Rugby Football Union officially submitted its tender to the International Rugby Board in May 2009.^[14]

South Africa

The South African Rugby Union (SARU) had confirmed that it is bidding for the 2015 tournament.^[15] It had made an unsuccessful bid for 2011. The strengths of a South African bid would be that it is in the same time zone as Europe, the wealthiest television market, that they were the current World Cup holders, that they previously hosted the tournament with great success and that they had built a series of new stadiums for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. On 7 May 2009 the South Africa Rugby Union delivered its application to the International Rugby Board ahead of the Friday 8 May deadline.^[16]

Venues

After the decision by the IRB on 28 July 2009, the proposed stadiums for the tournament were revealed. Eleven stadiums in England and possibly one in Wales were chosen.^[4] Only two of the stadiums (Welford Road and Kingsholm Stadium) are dedicated club rugby grounds; two are national rugby stadiums (Twickenham and the Millennium Stadium); and the remainder are football grounds.

Under the initial proposal, all stadiums will host pool games. Twickenham will host the final, both semi-finals and one quarter-final. The Millennium Stadium will host two quarter-finals. Wembley will host one quarter-final. The Emirates Stadium will host the bronze medal match.^[17]

The first venue officially announced was Millennium Stadium, which was endorsed by the IRB on 24 May 2011.^[2] The RFU had proposed the stadium because of its size and strategic location close to major rugby hotbeds in England's West Country, a view with which the IRB ultimately agreed.^[18] As for the remaining venues, the RFU have stated that they won't be deciding the exact stadiums until the beginning of 2012, and these will have to be fixed in place by 2013.

London	London	Manchester	Cardiff
Wembley	Twickenham	Old Trafford	Millennium Stadium
51°33′21″N 0°16′47″W / 51.55583°N 0.27972°W / 51.55583; -0.27972 (Wembley Stadium)	51°27′22″N 0°20′30″W / 51.45611°N 0.34167°W / 51.45611; -0.34167 (Twickenham Stadium)	53°27′47″N 2°17′29″W / 53.46306°N 2.29139°W / 53.46306; -2.29139 (Old Trafford)	51°28′40.46″N 3°10′56.75″W / 51.4779056°N 3.1824306°W / 51.4779056; -3.1824306 (Millennium Stadium)
Capacity: 90,000	Capacity: 82,000	Capacity: 76,212	Capacity: 74,500
London	Wembley Emirates Stadium Old Trafford Anfield St. James' Park Elland Road Millennium Stadium Twickenham St. Mary's Stadium Ricoh Arena Welford Road Kingsholm Stadium Location of the proposed 12 stadiums to host rugby matches at the 2015 IRB World Cup		Newcastle
Emirates Stadium			St James' Park
Capacity: 60,355			Capacity: 52,387
51°33′18″N 0°6′31″W / 51.555°N 0.10861°W / 51.555; -0.10861 (Emirates Stadium)			54°58′32″N 1°37′18″W / 54.97556°N 1.62167°W / 54.97556; -1.62167 (St James' Park)
Liverpool			Leeds
Anfield			Elland Road
53°25′50.95″N 2°57′38.98″W / 53.4308194°N 2.9608278°W / 53.4308194; -2.9608278 (Anfield)			53°46′40″N 1°34′20″W / 53.77778°N 1.57222°W / 53.77778; -1.57222 (Elland Road)
Capacity: 45,276			Capacity: 37,900
Southampton	Coventry	Leicester	Gloucester
St Mary's Stadium	Ricoh Arena	Welford Road Stadium	Kingsholm Stadium
Capacity: 32,689	Capacity: 32,609	Expansion to 30,000	Expansion to 19,700
50°54′21″N 1°23′28″W / 50.90583°N 1.39111°W / 50.90583; -1.39111 (St Mary's Stadium)	52°26′53″N 1°29′44″W / 52.44806°N 1.49556°W / 52.44806; -1.49556 (Ricoh Arena)	52°37′27″N 1°07′59″W / 52.62417°N 1.13306°W / 52.62417; -1.13306 (Welford Road Stadium)	51°52′18″N 2°14′34″W / 51.87167°N 2.24278°W / 51.87167; -2.24278 (Kingsholm Stadium)

Qualified Teams

England, being the host nation, qualify automatically. All the teams that came 3rd or above in the pool stages of the 2011 Rugby World Cup automatically qualify.

The qualification process for the remaining teams will incorporate existing regional competitions such as the European Nations Cup. ^[19]

Pool stage

The first round, or pool stage, sees the twenty teams divided into four pools of five teams using the same format that was used in 2003, 2007 and in 2011. Each pool is a round-robin of ten games, where each team plays one match against each of the other teams in the same pool. Teams are awarded four points for a win, two points for a draw and none for a defeat. A team scoring four or more tries in one match will score a bonus point, as will a team who loses by seven points or fewer.

The teams finishing in the top two of each pool will advance to the quarterfinals. The top three teams of each pool will receive automatic qualification to the 2019 Rugby World Cup.

Media Coverage

ITV Sport will be the UK and worldwide host broadcaster for the 2015 event, having signed a deal in 2011 to broadcast the 2011 and 2015 RWC tournaments. ITV won the rights after outbidding rivals including the BBC and Sky Sports. It will show every match from the tournaments live in the UK on ITV1 and ITV4. It has rights to stream the matches online at itv.com and also broadcast highlights online. ITV has broadcast every World Cup tournament since 1991. Niall Sloane, ITV Controller of Sport, said, 'ITV has a long association with Rugby World Cup and we are delighted to have secured the next two Rugby World Cups free-to-air for ITV's viewers, particularly as the 2015 tournament takes place in England'. Mike Miller, RWCL Managing Director, said, 'ITV and RWCL have enjoyed a long working partnership. Through its commitment to the sport and exceptional production values ITV has played a central role in the promotion and growth of rugby and Rugby World Cup in the United Kingdom and we are looking forward to extending that fruitful partnership over the next two RWC tournaments'. ^[20]

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: 2015 Rugby World Cup

• The IRB official site