THE IRFU ARE considering a bid to host the Rugby World Cup in 2023, and noises from today’s GAA central council meeting suggest that the association is ready to back the bid by opening up its stadia to the oval ball game.
With the Aviva Stadium, the RDS, Thomond Park and Ravenhill the largest venues for rugby in the country, the IRFU say they understand:
“Any bid would be heavily dependent on support from the Government and the GAA.”
The GAA’s rules prohibit the use of its grounds to be used for rugby or association football, but this was relaxed in 2005 when both codes were played in Croke Park.
The added infrastructure of the Jones Road venue along with Semple Stadium, the Gaelic Grounds and Páirc Uí Chaoimh would add considerable weight to the Union’s case.
A statement released by the GAA this afternoon did not rule out the opening of venues and promised the issue would be put to congress this winter.
“The Central Council of the GAA agreed to ask 2013 Congress if it is willing to amend Rule 5.1 to allow up to six GAA grounds to be used for the Rugby World Cup, in the event of a successful IRFU bid to host the 2023 or 2027 tournament.“The decision to place a motion on the 2013 Congress agenda allows the IRFU to proceed to explore the feasibility of an application.”
It is understood that the IRFU now have a year to decide if they will present their case before the IRB. Until GAA congress ratifies a rule change then the plan will remain firmly on the ground.
New Zealand hosted and won the 2011 World Cup, 2015 will see England attempt to emulate the feat and in 2019 the game’s show-piece event will take place in Japan.
“The Rugby World Cup in New Zealand showed what a country of four million people could achieve in terms of attracting visitors,” Browne said in a statement, “so an overall Ireland bid is something that the government was keen to discuss with us.”
This is a great idea. The GAA could use this as a great opertunity to upgrade it stadiums. If one small Rugby mad Island Nation like New Zealand can host the World Cup Why can’t Ireland?
That GAA crowd should be forced to open up Croke park! After all it was the taxpayer who paid for most of the redevelopment!
That’s a myth. Most of the external funding donated to Croke Park came from the proceeds of the National Lottery; not from the exchequer. The State contributed about €19 million in preparation for the Special Olympics.
The Stadiums should be open because of the huge benefit it would have for the whole country, not because of some perceived past debt owed to the taxpayers (of whom many are GAA followers).
Rodrigo Detriano your comment is ill-informed and prejudiced, you anti-GAA bigot.
Chill Clive he’s just a troll
Nice to see the GAA supporting the IRFU in their bid, hope they are successful.
Ireland is shaped like a rugby ball so it makes sense, just like this comment
It’s a teddy bear
As a Gaa man I would hope this is passed. it would benefit everyone in the country. And to the comment made about the Gaa being forced (?) to open croker due to it being part funded by the taxayer? Did we, the taxpayer nit contribute ?250m to the redevelopment of Landsdowne Road?? Good to see begrudgery alive and well. Onwards and upwards for both codes I say!!
That’s good, would be great to host the Rugby world cup here in Ireland. Everyone would benefit! Hope it happens.
Padraig, you seem to have forgot about Thomond Park, the spiritual home of Irish Rugby.
Amazing it rumored they won’t play games there cause the galic grounds down the road with seats put in would hold an extra 15,000 people, I can see the logic but thomand will surely hold some games, the stadium I think they should use, aviva Croke park rds cork killarney 2 in limerick pearse stadium the sports ground ravenhill and maybe the decent stadium
They have in portlaoise
2023? Jesus that’s a long way off, hopefully there’ll still be a country here for them
And hopefully you won’t be in the country any more
Hahaha good one
absolutely no objection to the Gaa getting involved with a rugby world cup bid and we should strive for an event like this on our little island!
Contrary to the article above though Thurles is not part of the bid, I understand logistically the town might be too small as in lacking in hotels etc, but its probably the 3rd best stadium in the country after Croke Park and the Aviva and is miles ahead of Cork, Killarney and Galway in their current incarnations anyway.
Thank god for that, it’s a kip of a town
Nowt wrong with Killarney as a venue it has had exstensive redevelopment over the last 10 years or so. As a host town it doesnt get much better from a tourist point of view. Worth a look at for the competition at least.
Any danger we’d finish the stadium? As a Dubs fan I’ve many fond memories of standing on the Hill cheering on the lads, bit it’s time to engineer a completion to the Railway End.
It’s finished as best as it can be, to change the railway line and buy properties on Clonliffe Road would cost a fortune, maybe this World Cup might help pay for it
Well it’s not like they have a GAA world cup now is it?
We are and always have been a sporting nation.
All our children play all different sports
No room for the bigots in any sport
GAA / IRFU / FAI et all other sporting organisations should stand together and demonstrate to the world the collective power of all rather than the isolation of one for the promotion of sportsmanship across all peoples regardless of politics, colour or creed etc.
We have a great reputation abroad but we need to live it at home
I hope we do put a bid in and are successful with the bid. It will be a big boost for our small country.
How many of these games would attract sell out crowds?
Plus I hope there is a change in the drawn out format we saw last year.
Apart from those issues I am for it.
Great idea for Ireland. Not so much for the development of world rugby however when every second RWC is held in a small corner of Western Europe – Britain, France and Ireland.
I’d prefer to see a combo of Spain/Portugal, Fiji/Samoa, Canada/USA or Argentina/Uruguay have an opportunity to host it. The IRB control the coffers and fixtures between the top 10 like a closed shop – meaning if Ireland gets RWC 2023 – 5 of the 10 RWC’s will have been staged in Eng,Fra and Ire. Good for making the top notchos in the IRB money from European tv revenue and sponsorship but terrible for development of the game worldwide
The only way the IRB can afford to pay for the development of rugby throughout the world is by hosting at least every second world cup in a large market which gurantees large revenue. This allows them to spend the required money on regional developmemt and coaching in Tier 2 and 3 nations in the intervening years. The revenue from Australia ’03 and France ’07 covered the costs of developing the game. NZ ’11 was never going to bring in the same money. The IRB’s policy now is to alternate between Tier 1 and Tier 2/3 nations so that funding is covered by a commercially successful RWC in Tier 1 balanced by the development potential of a RWC in a Tier 2/3 nation, hence England 2015 and Japan 2019.
It would be great to see this happen. Opening Croke Park to rugby and football hasn’t changed the love people still have for playing and watching hurling and gaelic and it showcased Croker as a world class stadium.
Shove the cynicism and begrudgery! If Ireland wins their bid, this will be a great benefit to sport and the country as a whole.
Well, it’s not the Olympics, but it’s a start, at least…
Fiji / samoa ???? obviously you’ve never been to both – better chance of stamullen and the naul co hosting it