MBOMBELA – To mark 500 days to go until Rugby World Cup 2015, hosted in England, Tournament Organisers have revealed the plans for a Rugby World Cup Trophy Tour which will see the iconic Webb Ellis Cup travel to South Africa as part of a celebration of Rugby.
The tour, which is being delivered in partnership with Land Rover and DHL – two long supporters of the Game and Rugby World Cup Worldwide Partners – will visit a mixture of established and developing Rugby nations.
In August it will visit Cape Town and Johannesburg to celebrate the unique and shared culture of the Game.
On Tuesday May 20 the Webb Ellis Cup departs for Japan and will then visit 14 other countries over the next 400 days before returning to England on 100 days to go (June 10, 2015) to travel around the UK and Ireland as part of the build-up to the start of the Tournament.
Each Rugby World Cup Trophy Tour visit will last between three to five days and will include a school visit, a rugby club visit, a reception hosted at the British Embassy, unique activation with local communities delivered by Land Rover and DHL and opportunities for the Cup to visit iconic locations and be on display to Rugby fans around the world.
Each part of the visit will be an opportunity to showcase the values of the game and celebrate Rugby in the build up to 2015.
South Africa, twice winners of the Webb Ellis Cup in 1995 and 2007, will face Samoa, Scotland, USA and a qualifying team from Asia in Pool B. Their first game will be against the qualifier Asia 1 on September 19 at the Brighton Community Stadium.
The Chief Executive of England Rugby 2015, Debbie Jevans, said: “We are very excited to announce the Rugby World Cup Trophy Tour plans. 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 in South Africa ahead of the Tournament.”
He added that when the Rugby World Cup comes around, every rugby fan knows that South Africa will be a top contender.
“Having the Webb Ellis Cup in South Africa later this year is sure to inspire the fans and the team, who will have their eye on a third victory next year. Visiting 15 countries that include nations qualified for RWC 2015, those competing for the final four spots, and emerging rugby markets gives us an opportunity to showcase the global game and its shared values.
“In DHL and Land Rover, we have two brilliant partners who are longstanding supporters of rugby, and we look forward to the start of the tour in Japan later this month,” said Jevans.
The announcement of the Rugby World Cup Trophy Tour comes on the 500 days to go milestone, as organisers also confirmed details on the date for the general ticket sales – September 12 to September 29 (2014). Fans across the world can already purchase tickets for Rugby’s biggest event through the locally appointed Official Travel Agents.
As the Tournament moves into the final stage of planning and prepares for delivery details on the location of the Team Bases, the bases for the 20 teams used throughout the Tournament, will be announced this summer (2014) as well as completion of the qualification programme which will see the final four teams qualify by November (2014).
