Rugby’s rulers are increasingly keen on taking the 2035 World Cup to Spain – and staging games at football meccas like the Nou Camp and Bernabeu. World Rugby CEO Alan Gilpin was in Spain recently and was impressed with the set-up and the way the national government are ready to get behind the bid.
Gilpin is keen to bring the tournament back to Europe, with Australia hosting in 2027 and USA in 2031, but the Spaniards face competition from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Japan who are set to throw their hats in the ring.
Gilpin said: “Spain is a fantastic market for any sport. They are obviously good at football, basketball, handball, golf, tennis, athletics.
“They have got a great relationship with La Liga as the entity that has got the access to the venues for them. They are going to host a FIFA World Cup in 2030, they have poured in more investment into what is already a great sports infrastructure, so they are a really exciting prospect.
“The Spanish sporting ecosystem invests in sport as a whole and they have got an incredibly supportive government.”
Spain’s men have qualified for Australia 2027 unlike the USA who failed to get through to France 2023 and are sweating on getting through to the event in two years’ time.
The Americans will be there in 2031, as hosts, and Gilpin has poured cold water on claims the US public will cold shoulder the tournament.
Gilpin added: “There is a huge amount of rugby activity taking place in the US and there are a huge amount of rugby supporters in the US. I am really encouraged by the pace of progress we are making.
“I was there for the double header, USA women against Fiji and the men against England recently. The women’s game was live and national, every household in the US could see it on CBS which is a real milestone.”