Federal and NSW Governments back Rugby Australia plans for 2021 Women’s Rugby World Cup

Rugby Australia has announced Newcastle and the Hunter Valley as the tournament location for its 2021 Women’s Rugby World Cup bid.

The bid proposes that the NSW region would host the world’s showpiece event in women’s rugby, making use of local sporting facilities and tourism infrastructure, making use of the Maitland #1 Sportsground and Newcastle Sportsground No 2 with the Final to be held at McDonald Jones Stadium.

If successful, the bid would pave the way for Australia to host the first Women’s Rugby World Cup ever played in the southern hemisphere, with 11 countries from around the world joining the Wallaroos for the tournament.

Following the announcement of its ‘10 world cups in 10 years’ strategy, the NSW Government has confirmed that, should the bid be successful , it will provide financial and operational support to Rugby Australia for tournament delivery.

This follows the Federal Government’s having provided $300,000 to support the bid and Australian Minister for Sport Senator Bridget McKenzie being on hand yesterday to support Rugby Australia as the final pieces of its bid documentation are finalised before being submitted to World Rugby on 10th August.

Senator McKenzie advised “if this bid is successful, it will be the first time the Women’s Rugby World Cup is held in the southern hemisphere, and the first time we can cheer on the home team – the Wallaroos.

“The Wallaroos are inspiring a whole new generation of girls to get involved in rugby and events such as the World Cup provide an opportunity to showcase our great nation and provides flow on benefits to the whole community.

“Importantly, it will also position Rugby Australia well in its future bid for the men’s 2027 World Cup.”

Commenting on the development of the bid, Rugby Australia Chief Executive, Raelene Castle stated “the Women’s Rugby World Cup is the pinnacle event in Women’s XVs Rugby and we will show the world once again that Australia is unrivalled when it comes to delivering major sporting events.

“We have more women and girls playing Rugby than ever before and we continue to see double-digit growth in participation in both our Sevens and XVs formats of the game. Hosting the tournament would provide us with a once-in-a-generation opportunity to showcase the best of the women’s game to the Australian public.

“Our bid demonstrates that Australia has the ability to tap into a rich history of major event expertise, a strong women’s sports movement, corporate support, volunteers and engaged sports fans in Australia that will deliver a record breaking tournament.”

World Rugby is expected to announce the winner of the right to host the 2021 Women’s Rugby World Cup in November.

Fans can show their support for the bid online by using #READY #BackTheBid #Australia2021 or visiting australia2021.com.au.

Images: Senator Bridget McKenzie, Federal Minister for Sport and Rugby Australia Chief Executive, Raelene Castle join players to support the final pieces of the bid documentation before being submitted to World Rugby on 10th August. Courtesy of Rugby Australia.