Visit England blew a volley of trumpets on Tuesday, to mark the 500th World Cup taking place in the fall of 2015. To make sure everybody was aware, London used special lighting to turn its City Hall into a giant rugby ball. The 48 matches comprising the World Cup will take place in the cities such as Gloucester, Brighton, Leeds, and London. This competition gives England yet another big event to follow in their steady pursuit of event- driven destination marketing. The Olympics, the Para-Olympics, NFL and NBA games hosted in London constitute a branch of the marketing that put sport at the center of the promotions.
“We are very excited to announce the Rugby World Cup Trophy Tour plans,” said Debbie Jevans, England Rugby 2015 CEO. “This gives us a unique opportunity to celebrate rugby around the world in the lead up to 2015, engaging and exciting rugby fans and potential new audiences ahead of the Tournament. Visiting 15 countries, including nations qualified for RWC 2015 and emerging rugby markets, gives us an opportunity to showcase the global game and its shared values.”
“Rugby World Cup 2015 is another massive sporting event being hosted in the UK and will be a fantastic opportunity to showcase the very best the country has to offer to an international audience and inspire greater sports participation,” said Helen Grant MP, minister for sport and tourism. VisitBritain research on the impact of the 2012 Olympics on visitor perceptions shows that 73 percent of those surveyed agreed that Britain offered outstanding venues for watching live sport.
Thanks to a victory by the US national rugby union team, the Eagles, on March 29, over Uruguay at Kennesaw State University in Georgia, the US has skin in the game for this World Cup and so savvy agents will mark Sept. 12 as the day tickets for all 48 matches will go on general sale. The sales window closes on Sept. 29, a year before the tournament kicks off. Eight matches will be held in London’s Millennium Stadium.
According to Rugby Union, the sport is growing by leaps and bounds in the US where there are more than 2,500 clubs on many different levels and in a variety of age groups. Rugby Union estimates that there are 450,000 American rugby players.
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