World Cup lifeline for NZ, small countries

World Rugby will consider a radical overhaul of the bidding process to host future World Cups that could open the door for smaller nations to stage the tournament.

One option could be to combine voting on up to three future tournaments at once, with at least one being awarded to a country for ‘‘developmental’’ reasons to help grow the game.

The move comes amid concerns that bids could be dominated by hosts offering the most lucrative terms after France’s shock victory over Ireland and South Africa to host the 2023 tournament in a secret ballot last November. Ireland had been the early favourite but ended up being eliminated in the first round of the ballot.

An independent review of the three bids led to the World Rugby board recommending the South African bid to its council, but the majority of votes went to the French bid, which offered a guaranteed net revenue return of £350 million (NZ$668m).

Bill Beaumont, who inherited the process after becoming chairman of World Rugby in 2016, is now determined to address concerns that only countries guaranteeing the highest payday will win hosting rights.

That opens the door for New Zealand to host a third World Cup.

The executive committee of World Rugby met in Dublin on Monday for the first time since the controversial 2023 bid vote and Beaumont has begun holding discussions with member unions to ensure the council doesn’t always ‘‘chase the cash’’.