Newcastle Launches 2018 Rugby Cup Finals Bid
Newcastle is bidding to become the host city for the 2018 European Rugby Champions Cup final, European Rugby Challenge cup final and Challenge Cup Qualifying competition final.
The events are set to be staged in May 2018 and combined form one of the biggest weekends in club rugby, generating over €20.4m in total economic impact.
If Newcastle is successful in its bid, the Champions Cup final would be held at Newcastle United’s St James’ Park Stadium, with the Challenge Cup final proposed to be held at Kingston Park Stadium, home of Aviva Premiership rugby club Newcastle Falcons.
The bid is a partnership between Newcastle City Council, NewcastleGateshead Initiative, Newcastle United Football Club and Newcastle Rugby, and has been submitted with the support of the Rugby Football Union and Premiership Rugby.
The next stage of the bidding process to award the host of the three events sees a shortlist of candidate cities drawn up by tournament organisers, European Professional Club Rugby, by 16th December 2016. That is followed by venue visits and a selection process through to March 2017, before a final decision is made in April 2017.
Nick Forbes, leader of Newcastle City Council, said: “Newcastle now has a global reputation for hosting big sporting events following the success of the Rugby World Cup last year, as well as rugby league’s Magic Weekend for two consecutive years with record crowds.
“These top-tier competitions would bring thousands of fans into the city from all over Europe, with this year’s tournament in Grand Stade de Lyon attracting over 58,000 spectators. Securing this for Newcastle would bring enormous economic benefits for the city and the wider region.”
Lee Charnley, managing director of Newcastle United said: “We have a strong recent history of hosting major rugby events at St James’ Park. The sell-out crowds we have welcomed – record attendances in many cases – pay testament to our ability to excel at the hosting of such high-profile sporting events. We would be delighted to host the 2018 European Rugby Champions Cup final at St James’ Park.”
Mick Hogan, managing director of Newcastle Rugby said: “Securing the 2018 finals would be another significant boost for the development and growth of rugby in the region.
“The city has two great venues in St James’ Park and Kingston Park Stadium, which would ensure a fantastic weekend of club rugby. When it comes to major events Newcastle upon Tyne always delivers to the very highest levels. We saw that in abundance during last year’s Rugby World Cup, and would see it again if Newcastle was chosen as the host city in 2018.”
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