England To Bid Solo For 2015 Rugby World Cup
The Rugby Football Union (RFU) has confirmed that it will be bidding to host the 2015 Rugby World Cup alone, ruling out any joint proposals with any of the other home nation unions although the bid may include plans for some matches to be staged in those countries.
Having already registered its intention to bid to host the tournament with the International Rugby Board, the RFU has now received the all-important government backing for its bid with both Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Department of Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Andy Burnham both lending their support to the proposal.
Scotland, Wales and Ireland are keen on staging the tournament but none of them have the facilities to do it alone.
RFU chairman Martyn Thomas said England would consider moving some matches to stadiums in the other three home nations although it would be considered the solitary host of the tournament should it win the bidding process.
The facilities on offer at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium, which hosted games in the 1999 and 2007 World Cups, Murrayfield in Edinburgh, Hampden Park in Glasgow and Croke Park and Lansdowne Road in Dublin are obvious candidates.
Said Thomas: ‘England will bid for the World Cup. We have certainly had very good discussions with the Welsh in terms of using the facilities they have, particularly the Millennium Stadium but also the Ospreys and maybe the new Cardiff stadium.
‘I am sure if we go ahead with the bid we will certainly involve games in Wales. We haven’t totally ruled out games further north. We want to make sure there are games in the north of England and that it reaches out to as many people as possible.’
Eight different countries have expressed an interest in hosting the 2015 event – Italy, South Africa, Australia, Japan and the four home nations.
RFU chief executive Francis Baron had warned that England may withdraw their bid because of ‘massive financial risks’, saying that the International Rugby Board’s demands for a guaranteed sum in profits had changed the bid process.
But Thomas met with DCMS Secretary Andy Burnham and outlined the levels of financial support the RFU would require to host the tournament for the first time since 1991.
Added Thomas: ‘I am pleased to say Andy Burnham has indicated today he is very happy to sit down with us and give us some support.
‘There seem to be potentially two other countries that are likely to be strong contenders – where their government has come very strong to say they will, as we are told, underwrite the bid totally. One is in Europe and one in South Africa.
‘I have had a very positive meeting with Andy Burnham, who is the boss, and with Gordon Brown – who is the ultimate boss. Certainly Andy is very supportive in helping us win the Rugby World Cup.’
