SA can bid for Rugby WC

The door has reopened for South Africa to bid for the 2023 Rugby World Cup following the lifting of a previous suspension of the right to host major sporting events.

Minister for Sport and Recreation Thulas Nxesi said at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria yesterday that rugby had met the targets set out in the transformation charter.

Ireland and France are also bidding to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup tournament. The winning bidder will be named by World Rugby on November 15.

The way was cleared for SA Rugby to submit a bid as a result of the latest report by the Eminent Persons Group (EPG), set up by the department of sport and recreation, to monitor the pace of transformation in sport. The report examines sports from school level to elite level, on and off the field, under demographics, performance, governance, access, preferential procurement and employment equity.

“I would like to congratulate rugby, cricket and netball on their improved scores. You were clearly willing to walk the extra mile,” said Nxesi.

“Their right to bid for and host major sporting events, which was revoked before, is hereby immediately reinstated,” he said.

SA Rugby yesterday confirmed it was on track to submit a compelling bid to bring a vibrant, profitable and spectacular Rugby World Cup to South Africa in 2023.

Mark Alexander, president of SA Rugby, said from a World Rugby meeting in Tokyo: “This is great news and a tribute to the work that the sport has been doing in recent years to stay in tune and relevant to modern South Africa. We can now put the finishing touches to what we believe will be an outstanding bid to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup.

“We have kept the ministry up to speed with our thinking and state of preparation throughout the suspension and continue to enjoy an excellent relationship with our sports leaders.”

The EPG report measures SA sports federations on national imperatives to provide greater access to sport for all.