Rugby Australia’s cup to runneth over with two world-class events

RUGBY is back.

After almost a quarter of a century, the Rugby World Cup is returning to Australia – in 2027 then again in 2029.

Previously held in Australia in 1987 and 2003, the men’s World Cup will take place in 2027, bigger than ever before, then followed two years later by the women’s tournament.

Both events were confirmed on Thursday night at a meeting of the sport’s world governing body in Ireland, where the United States was awarded the 2031 and 2033 double.

The Wallabies haven’t won the Webb Ellis Cup since 1999 but for the team’s long-suffering fans, the return of the world’s third-biggest sporting event to Australian shores is cause enough to crack open the champagne. There’s no disputing that rugby in Australia has fallen on hard times in the past two decades through poor management and disappointing on-field results but if anything can return the game to its past glories, it’s the return of the game’s showcase event.

But it comes with a warning – that the game’s custodians don’t stuff it up and blow all the profits as they did after the 2003 World Cup.

“We are very cognisant of the fact that while we get the World Cup in 2027 and 2029, we don’t know when another big marquee event like that is going to land on our shores,” RA chief executive Andy Marinos said. “So we’ve got to be very, very, very careful and manage it and that is at the forefront of this board’s mind.”

With the game struggling financially, the stakes this time have never been higher, particularly as the World Cup has grown from humble beginnings into a virtual licence to print money.

Rugby Australia has forecast that the 2027 tournament will generate $2.8bn in economic impact and will be watched by a global cumulative TV audience of four billion.

They expect to sell more than two million tickets while attracting 217,000 international visitors, most with deep pockets and expensive tastes.

With the British and Irish Lions touring in 2025 followed by back-to-back World Cups then the Brisbane Olympics in 2032, Rugby Australia is hoping to hit the sort of numbers they expect to safeguard the game’s future for decades.