World Cup could help make Pugh’s US prediction reality
USA Rugby will in January formally submit its proposal to host either the 2027 or 2031 World Cup – it would prefer the latter with Australia favourites to win the other bid – and the women’s tournament which will be staged in 2029.
If successful in both, it predicts combined ticket sales of more than four million with major American football franchises backing the bid.
Vernon Pugh made a prediction after announcing in 1995 that Rugby Union was going open. The then chairman of the International Rugby Board saw the game’s boundaries widening and that countries which until then had barely made a ripple on the sport would become major players.
The one he most had in mind was the USA which, with its size, population, reach and influence, has long been coveted by marketing departments. In the 26 years since, the USA Eagles have struggled to take flight and still have to qualify for the 2023 World Cup, while a professional league started only three years ago, but there are signs that Pugh’s crystal ball was not cracked.
“We feel strongly that based on tickets alone we can deliver a sizeable profit compared to previous World Cups,” said Jim Brown, the chair of the USA’s bid committee. “Our modelling on the revenue and profit sides will make it an attractive option for World Rugby.
“We are bullish about this opportunity and we have time to prepare ourselves. Our preference is for 2031 because that would give us longer to develop the game here and the market for rugby. Being awarded both the men’s and women’s tournaments would mean we could unify the organisation.”
Brown said 29 cities had expressed interest in staging matches, including Vancouver, which is across the border from Seattle on the northwest coast, although Canada would not have co-hosting rights. The 49ers are leading San Francisco’s bid with the Patriots doing the same in Boston while New York City’s is being driven by the Jets and the Giants.
The men’s tournament would be played in grounds with a capacity of at least 50,000 and Brown said he was confident they would be filled with 80 per cent of sports fans in the country saying they supported the bid and would be interested in watching matches.
One issue is the width of an NFL pitch which is narrower than a rugby field. “Many of the ones we are dealing with will comply with the requirements for the 2026 soccer World Cup (which the USA is hosting jointly with Canada and Mexico) and 20 have said they will meet the requirements,” said Brown. “The others will consider widening if we are picked.”
World Rugby has encouraged the USA to bid for a World Cup for some time, keen to broaden its commercial base, but the catalyst was the success of Japan in 2019 where interest in the game soared and what was expected to be a modest profit turned into a record one.
“We all want rugby to get where we feel it deserves to be within the US sporting landscape,” said the union’s chief executive, Ross Young, a former general manager of Harlequins who worked for Rugby World Cup Ltd between 2003 and 2011. “The two pillars of what we are trying to achieve are increasing participation and improving performance at all levels through to the national side.
“There would be no better platform than the World Cup, the third biggest sporting event in the world which generates a huge amount of interest. There are 45 million people in the US who have an interest in rugby and we need to harness that.”