Road To Rwc 2015 Begins In Europe
With three years to go until Rugby World Cup 2015 in England, the race to book a place at the sport’s showpiece event will be gathering pace over the next few weeks, as European qualifying gets underway.
Hungary host Bulgaria in Kecskemét on Saturday in the opening match of the qualification process, with the Webb Ellis Cup making an appearance following a Rugby World Cup road trip across Europe.
The famous trophy will be joined at different stages by former England Rugby 2015 Ambassadors Will Greenwood, Jonny Wilkinson and Lawrence Dallaglio, while Olivier Magne will add a French flavour to proceedings.
The tour began at Rugby School – the home of the sport – on 25th September and will take in stops at the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the grave of William Webb Ellis in Menton and a stopover in Monaco before arriving in Budapest prior to the weekend’s qualifier.
Dallaglio will then drive the Webb Ellis Cup to the match, having also been on hand to see Mexico launch the overall qualifying campaign back in March.
Up to 400,000 overseas fans are expected to make the trip to England for what will be the biggest Rugby World Cup in history, with an estimated 2.9 million tickets will be available for matches.
European qualifying will feature 32 teams across six divisions of the FIRA-AER European Nations Cup, with a total of 105 matches set to be played.
The qualifying race is already underway in Africa, Asia and the Americas, with 43 matches having taken place and further action to come when Europe and Oceania join the process.
Rugby World Cup Limited chairman Bernard Lapasset said: ‘The start of the European qualification process is another major landmark for the delivery of Rugby World Cup 2015 in England and a tournament that is on track to be a success on and off the field, creating a lasting legacy for Rugby throughout the United Kingdom, Europe and the continued global development of Rugby.’
‘We are experiencing unprecedented growth in Rugby in Europe with the Game beginning to really take off outside of its traditional heartlands. The likes of Moldova, Ukraine and Belgium continue to make giant strides in terms of the competitiveness of their national teams on the world stage, but also in the numbers of men, women and children playing the Game at every level.’
‘European qualification has always been fiercely competitive and the 2015 process will be no different. We have a fascinating two years of matches ahead of us and it will be compelling viewing to see whether a new nation will follow in the footsteps of Romania, Georgia, Russia, Spain and Portugal and make their Rugby World Cup debut.’
