RFU Confirms England 2015 Rwc Bid
The RFU has officially confirmed that England will bid to host the 2015 Rugby World Cup despite the £80m guarantee demanded of a host nation by tournament organisers the International Rugby Board.
Details of the bid will be made public after it is presented to the IRB on 13th May.
Twickenham, Wembley and Old Trafford have been mentioned as possible venues, together with the Millennium Stadium, the home of Welsh rugby union.
‘We believe it is time that we brought the tournament back to England,’ said RFU chief executive Francis Baron.
‘We are confident we would be able to provide the best platform to profile the sport on the world stage and enable us to make a lasting commitment to grassroots rugby.’
The RFU’s five-strong Dublin delegation will include 2003 World Cup winners Lawrence Dallaglio and Will Greenwood, plus Andy Burnham, the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport.
Ireland and Scotland recently pulled out of any co-hosting bid with the RFU, while the decision for England to make a solo bid comes after Twickenham’s failure to stage the 2007 World Cup, having lost by a landslide margin to France.
England last hosted the World Cup in 1991 along with Ireland, Scotland, Wales and France.
The Welsh Rugby Union has expressed delight that the bid includes proposals for matches to be played in Wales, though the country would not be considered as a co-host.
Other countries in the running are South Africa – hosts in 1995 – Japan and Italy. Bids to host the tournament must be submitted by 8th May.
The IRB will vote on the hosts for both the 2015 and 2019 World Cups on 28th July. New Zealand will stage the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
