Three bids to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup (RWC2023) were submitted to World Rugby by the June 2017 deadline, with France selected on 15 November 2017 ahead of Ireland and South Africa. Italy withdrew its bid in September 2016, while Argentina and the United States initially expressed interest but ultimately decided against a formal bid. RWC2023 will be France's first time as sole host, having been principal host in 2007, co-host in 1991, and subsidiary host in 1999.

Schedule

In 2010, it was reported that World Rugby might select the hosts for the 2023 and 2027 at the same time, as they did with the 2015 and 2019 tournaments.[1] Later this idea was dropped. The bidding schedule was as follows:[2][3]

DateEvent
14 May – 15 June 2015Unions submit an expression of interest to World Rugby
3 July 2015World Rugby confirms bidders
May 2016World Rugby releases tender documentation
1 September 2016Deadline for unions to confirm their intent to tender a bid[4]
1 November 2016Start of candidate phase for unions that meet the criteria outlined[4]
1 June 2017Deadline to submit detailed bid documents to World Rugby[4]
25 September 2017Bid presentations at World Rugby council meeting[3]
31 October 2017Recommendation of World Rugby council based on the Evaluation report[3]
15 November 2017World Rugby announces host for the 2023 Rugby World Cup[3]

The bidding process formally kicked off on 14 May 2015. World Rugby held a meeting with five potential Rugby World Cup 2023 hosts on 6 May 2015 in London that was attended by representatives from Ireland, Italy, South Africa, France and the United States. Apart from the U.S., the countries attending had all previously publicly announced their interest to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup.[5]

On 3 July 2015 World Rugby confirmed interest from the following four nations by the deadline of 15 June 2015:[6]

  • France France
  • Ireland Ireland
  • Italy Italy (withdrew bid on 28 September 2016)
  • South Africa South Africa

Confirmed bidders

South Africa

Locations of the 8 stadia provisionally included in South Africa's bid.

South Africa was considered one of the frontrunners to host the 2023 competition, having hosted the 1995 tournament and bid unsuccessfully for the right to host the 2011, 2015, and 2019 tournaments.[7][8]

In April 2016 the South African government banned its own rugby union from bidding to stage the 2023 World Cup over its failure to provide enough opportunities for black players. SA Rugby sought urgent talks with sports minister Fikile Mbalula in an effort to get its ban lifted in time for it to bid for the Rugby World Cup 2023. Jurie Roux, the chief executive of SA Rugby stated "There is no question that we have more work to do and we could be moving faster, but our sport has undergone a major overhaul in the past two or three years and we have definitely made great progress."

South Africa confirmed the bid on 9 May 2017 after the ban was lifted.[9] There are optimistic projections of a R27 billion injection to the local economy by hosting the event,[10] with a focus on eight stadiums across seven cities.[11][12]

StadiumLocationCapacityMatches
FNB StadiumSoweto, Johannesburg94,736Pool Matches, Quarter Finals, Final
Ellis Park StadiumJohannesburg62,567Pool Matches, Quarter Final, Semi Final, Bronze Medal Match
Cape Town StadiumCape Town55,000Pool Matches,Quarter Finals,Semi Final
Moses Mabhida StadiumDurban54,000Pool Matches, Quarter Finals
Loftus Versfeld StadiumPretoria51,762Pool Matches
Nelson Mandela Bay StadiumPort Elizabeth48,000Pool Matches
Free State StadiumBloemfontein46,000Pool Matches
Mbombela StadiumNelspruit40,929Pool Matches

Ireland

The Irish Government and the Northern Ireland Executive, together with the Irish Rugby Football Union, formally announced on 5 December 2014 their intentions to launch a bid to host the event.[13] Dick Spring, former Tánaiste and Ireland rugby player, and Chair of Ireland's Rugby World Cup 2023 bid, stated in May 2015 that Ireland already had received pledges of support from 40% of World Rugby's board's 27 votes.[14] Ireland's bid included both rugby and Gaelic games grounds. The 82,000 capacity GAA stadium Croke Park would host the final, while other newly redeveloped GAA stadia such as Casement Park, Fitzgerald Stadium, MacHale Park and Páirc Uí Chaoimh would be part of the bid.[15] In July 2017, emergency legislation was passed by the Oireachtas to grant the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the explicit statutory authority to make the financial guarantees which Rugby World Cup Limited required.[16]

On 15 November 2016, 12 stadia were announced as being part of the bid. The provisional list included Ireland's home stadium, Aviva Stadium, the home grounds of Leinster, Munster and Ulster, and eight GAA grounds, with two of these from each province. Some sites, such as Páirc Uí Chaoimh and Casement Park, were then undergoing renovations or expansions. Their planned capacities, as were listed on the IRFU's website, are provided.[17][18]

StadiumOwnerLocationCapacityMatch Category
Croke ParkGAADublin (Drumcondra)82,300Opening match, pool games, quarter-final & final
Lansdowne StadiumIRFU
FAI		 Dublin (Ballsbridge)51,700Pool games, quarter-final, semi-final
Páirc Uí ChaoimhCork GAACork45,770Pool games, quarter-final, semi-final
Fitzgerald StadiumKerry GAAKillarney43,180Pool games, quarter-final
Casement ParkAntrim GAABelfast34,186[19]Pool games
Pearse StadiumGalway GAAGalway26,197Pool games
MacHale ParkMayo GAACastlebar38,000Pool games
Thomond ParkIRFULimerick26,987Pool games
Nowlan ParkKilkenny GAAKilkenny27,800Pool games
RDS ArenaRoyal Dublin SocietyDublin (Ballsbridge)18,677Pool games
Kingspan StadiumIRFUBelfast18,168Pool games
Celtic ParkDerry GAADerry22,000Pool games

France

Locations of the 9 stadia provisionally included in France's bid.

France, which hosted the 2007 Rugby World Cup, expressed interest in hosting the 2023 tournament.[20] France launched its bid on 9 February 2017 revealing 19 potential host cities and an environmentally friendly transport plan.[21] On 17 March, 12 host cities were selected.[22] This list was later reduced to 9 cities (excluding Paris, Montpellier and Lens) :

StadiumLocationCapacity
Stade de FranceSaint-Denis (Paris)81,338
Stade VélodromeMarseille67,394
Stade Lyon-DécinesDécines-Charpieu (Lyon)59,186
Stade Pierre-MauroyVilleneuve-d'Ascq (Lille)50,157
Nouveau Stade de BordeauxBordeaux42,115
Stade Geoffroy GuichardSaint-Étienne41,965
Stade de la BeaujoireNantes38,128* or 40,000
Stade de NiceNice35,624
Stadium de ToulouseToulouse33,150

Hosting recommendation and decision

On 31 October 2017, the Rugby World Cup Limited Board submitted a comprehensive evaluation report of the bidders. The report stated that all three countries were capable of hosting the 2023 Rugby World Cup, and recommended South Africa as the preferred host in light of the report's scoring.[23][24] The evaluation report included a summary of the scoring:

RWCL executive summary scoring
CriteriaWeightSouth AfricaFranceIreland
Finance, commercial and commitments35%26.6928.4426.69
Venues and host cities30%26.6322.8821.75
Tournament infrastructure20%15.5013.7513.63
Vision and hosting concept10%6.257.066.75
Tournament, organisation and schedule5%3.913.753.44
TOTAL100%78.9775.8872.25

The biggest differentiating factor among scoring was for venues. South Africa has an ample number of large and modern stadiums by virtue of its hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup. By contrast, Ireland has not hosted a tournament of similar magnitude, and its stadiums would require significant technology and telecom upgrades to meet RWC requirements.

The evaluation report was met with criticism from French and Irish sources. The President of the French Rugby Federation, Bernard Laporte questioned why France, which had recently hosted the successful UEFA Euro 2016 football tournament, scored lower than South Africa for both stadiums and hotels.[25] Irish media questioned why all three countries received the same score on security;[26] South Africa has the eighth highest murder rate in the world, over 50 times higher than Ireland's rate, while France had suffered numerous terrorist attacks in 2012–17, leading to over 200 deaths. Additionally, the report included limited reference to the fact that Durban, South Africa had initially won the right to host the 2022 Commonwealth Games, before the Commonwealth Games Federation was forced to strip Durban of hosting rights for failure to deliver on key obligations and commitments.[27]

The evaluation report by the Rugby World Cup Limited Board states that French law considers a criminal offence to use, hold or sell drugs. The French bid states that this "would have no impact on RWC 2023 as a tournament, including the participating teams", but it "has not provided any official government documentation to support this statement and therefore this could pose a risk to the tournament and participating teams". According to the report, RWCL "did not specifically request government commitment at this stage".[28]

The World Rugby Council voted on 15 November 2017 to award the 2023 World Cup hosting rights to France.[23][24] In the first round of voting, no country achieved a majority. Ireland were then eliminated as they gained the fewest votes in the first round. France defeated South Africa in the second round of voting. Council members reportedly preferred the financial superiority of the French bid. According to ESPN, "France's proposal guaranteed a net revenue return of £350 million for World Rugby to invest back into the game; Ireland and South Africa's in turn came in at around £270m."[29] After the vote, IRFU chief executive Philip Browne conceded that last-placed Ireland could not match the other two countries financial offer and stadiums, and questioned whether World Rugby would allow a small country to host the World Cup.[30]

The council voting was as follows:

RWC Council voting
CandidateRound 1Round 2
France1824
South Africa1315
Ireland8—
TOTAL3939

Declined or withdrew bid

Italy

The Italian Rugby Federation (FIR) confirmed in March 2015 its intention to bid for the 2023 Rugby World Cup.[31] On 12 August 2016, the Italian Rugby Federation announced the 12 stadiums they expressed interest in using for the 2023 event.[32] However, on September 28, 2016, Italy officially withdrew from the competition to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup, after the decision of the Mayor of Rome, Virginia Raggi, to decline the bid of Rome to host the 2024 Summer Olympics.[33][34][35]

United States

The United States was anticipated to bid and was considered a possible contender to host the 2023 or 2027 Rugby World Cup.[36] World Rugby CEO Mike Miller stated in 2010 that the United States would host a Rugby World Cup, stating that "it's a question of when, not if."[1] However, in 2023 United States was chosen as Host Nation for 2031 Rugby World Cup

Argentina

Argentina's World Rugby Council representative Agustín Pichot stated that Argentina wanted to host the 2023 tournament.[37][38][39] In May 2016, following a meeting with Pichot, Argentine President Mauricio Macri announced government support for a 2027 Rugby World Cup bid.[40]

References

  1. 1 2 "Rugby Chief Says World Cup in U.S. Is Inevitable", New York Times, 11 November 2010. Retrieved 30 June 2014.
  2. ↑ "South Africa keen to host Rugby World Cup 2023", ESPNscrum.com, 4 March 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Candidate unions submit RWC 2023 bid files as hosting race ramps-up". World Rugby. 1 June 2017. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  4. 1 2 3 "RWC 2023 host selection process gathers pace with candidate visits". World Rugby. 13 March 2017. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  5. ↑ Rugby World Cup 2023 attracts strong interest as host selection process gets underway Archived 2015-09-23 at the Wayback Machine, aroundtherings.com, 5 May 2015. Retrieved 6 May 2015.
  6. ↑ World Rugby confirms Rugby World Cup 2023 hosting interest from four unions, worldrugby.org, 3 July 2015.
  7. ↑ Irish bid to host 2023 Rugby World Cup gathers momentum, The Irish Times, 22 January 2014. Retrieve 22 April 2014.
  8. ↑ "Italy ponder fresh World Cup bid", ESPNscrum.com, 22 October 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  9. ↑ "Rugby World Cup 2023: South African government lifts ban on hosting sporting events". 9 May 2017 – via www.bbc.com.
  10. ↑ "2023 Rugby World Cup will bring billions for South Africa - Sunday Tribune".
  11. ↑ "SA focus RWC 2023 bid on 8 stadiums".
  12. ↑ ""It's South Africa's Turn to Host RWC 2023. Do You Agree?" - Springboks - SAPeople - Your Worldwide South African Community". 19 July 2017.
  13. ↑ Ireland confirms bid for 2023 Rugby World Cup, RTÉ Sport, 6 December 2014.
  14. ↑ "Ireland’s 2023 RWC bid already has 40% of the vote, says Spring", The 42, 19 May 2015.
  15. ↑ "These are the 12 stadia that will make up Ireland's 2023 Rugby World Cup bid". The 42. 15 November 2016. Retrieved 17 November 2016.
  16. ↑ "Rugby World Cup 2023 Act 2017". Irish Statute Book. 13 July 2017. Retrieved 21 July 2017.; Ross, Shane (5 July 2017). "Rugby World Cup 2023 Bill 2017: Second Stage (Continued)". Dáil Éireann Debates. Retrieved 6 July 2017.; O'Connor, Niall (31 May 2017). "Sports Minster Shane Ross under fire as bid to host 2023 Rugby World Cup thrown into doubt". Irish Independent. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  17. ↑ "IRFU 2023". Irish Rugby. 15 November 2016. Archived from the original on 16 November 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
  18. ↑ "Ireland begins charm offensive as credible 2023 World Cup hosts".
  19. ↑ "Casement Park planning application submitted - Casement Park". www.casementpark.ie.
  20. ↑ "UPDATE 1-Rugby-Ireland plans ambitious bid for 2023 World Cup", Reuters, 18 November 2013. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  21. ↑ "Rugby: France launch 2023 World Cup bid", Reuters, 9 February 2017. Retrieved 10 February 2017
  22. ↑ "#France2023 : Douze villes hôtes retenues" (in French). sport24.com. 17 March 2017. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
  23. 1 2 "SA takes giant leap towards hosting 2023 RWC", News24, 31 October 2017.
  24. 1 2 "Rugby World Cup Board recommends South Africa as RWC 2023 host". World Rugby. 31 October 2017. Retrieved 1 November 2017.
  25. ↑ "Laporte calls 2023 World Cup report 'nonsense'", 3 November 2017.
  26. ↑ "Ireland’s Rugby World Cup bid was on a par with South Africa", Irish Times, 6 November 2017.
  27. ↑ "Durban stripped of Commonwealth Games", Radio New Zealand News, 14 March 2017.
  28. ↑ World Rugby will expect exemption on French law on doping - Gavin Cummiskey, The Irish times, 31 October 2017
  29. ↑ "2023 Rugby World Cup: France's winning bid built on financial clout", ESPN, 16 November 2017.
  30. ↑ "Ireland slam World Rugby, Celtic neighbours after unsuccessful bid", ESPN, 16 November 2017.
  31. ↑ "Italy to run against Ireland in World Cup bid". RTÉ Sport. 5 March 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2011.
  32. ↑ Andrea Cimbrico (12 August 2016). "Rugby World Cup 2023, identificati gli stadi per la candidatura italiana" [Rugby World Cup 2023, revealed the venues part of the Italian bid]. federugby.it (in Italian). Federazione Italiana Rugby. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
  33. ↑ "FIR withdraws from RWC 2023 hosting process". world.rugby. World Rugby. 28 September 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
  34. ↑ James Reynolds (21 September 2016). "Rome 2024 Olympic bid collapses in acrimony". BBC News. Archived from the original on 21 September 2016. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  35. ↑ Simone Battaggia (28 September 2016). "Rugby: l'Italia rinuncia anche alla candidatura per i Mondiali del 2023" [Rugby: Italy withdraws its 2023 RWC bid]. la Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). Milan. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
  36. ↑ "United States eye World Cup bid", ESPN Scrum, 2 December 2011.
  37. ↑ Agustín Pichot reaffirms Argentina's Quest to host Rugby World Cup 2023 Archived 2015-07-05 at the Wayback Machine, Rugby World Cup Argentina 2023, 11 December 2013.
  38. ↑ Home Page Archived 2015-07-05 at the Wayback Machine, Rugby World Cup Argentina 2023, 18 December 2013,
  39. ↑ Rugby World Cup Argentina 2023, The Book Depository, Paul Tait, 26 November 2012.
  40. ↑ "Con el apoyo del gobierno, el rugby argentino se prepara para el Mundial 2027", Canchallena, 24 May 2016.
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