France upbeat on prospects of hosting 2023 Rugby World Cup
WE HAVE MAIN ELEMENTS LIKE STADIA, RUGBY LOVERS READY: LAPORTE
he French people are quite upbeat of reaping the benefits of hosting an international event like the Rugby World Cup in 2023, according to a top official of the country’s rugby body.
France has declared itself as one of the nations — Ireland and South Africa being the other two — who have bid for hosting the rugby spectacle in 2023. An independent survey has shown that more than 80 per cent of the French are currently in favour of hosting the Rugby World Cup, while another 77 per cent are convinced on the attractive economic benefits for the European nation.
“It is all about economics The UAE will be in a position to host an IRB-sanctioned Test match earliest by 2018, according to the general secretary of the UAE Rugby Federation (UAE RF). Speaking at the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the UAE RF and Bernard Laporte, Qais Al Dhalai said: “A proper Test match between France and another big team like New Zealand or Australia is a big possibility in 2018 or perhaps in 2019. Of course, the UAE hosts the very popular Dubai Rugby 7s each year, but we have never hosted a proper Test match. This would be indeed be a major sporting event as it would the first time in the UAE history or any other country in this region to host a rugby Test match.” when it comes to hosting a Rugby World Cup in France. We have the main elements for a successful Rugby World Cup, namely the stadia, the people to watch and a history to go along,” Bernard Laporte, President of French Rugby Federation (FFR) told Gulf News on the sidelines of a press conference yesterday.
“Following last year’s Euro, we have some really big stadiums at our disposal, and then we have a lot of people who love rugby. There are 66 million people in France alone who are involved in either playing or watching the sport,” he added.
With a few months to go before the host is revealed on November 15, the French are even more in support of the World Cup as they go up for a vote against bids from Ireland and South Africa. If awarded, it will be the first time for Ireland, while South Africa have hosted and won in 1995 and France made it to the semi-finals as co-hosts in 2007 when Laporte was the national team coach.
“In 2007, France had a fantastic World Cup, and we can safely hope to have an even bigger and better World Cup in 2023,” Laporte noted.
A total of 2.5 million tickets are expected to be sold. The survey further shows one-fourth of the French population are willing to actively associate with the event, either as volunteers or by purchasing tickets to attend, while another 69 per cent are ready to root for the French squad.