Americas Rugby News Rugby news from across the Americas!
The official fixtures for the inaugural Americas Rugby Championship have been known since December but not all unions have yet confirmed where they are to play their home matches. One of the unions yet to do so is Argentina. Los Pumas will play host to two matches with Chile playing in Argentina in round two and Canada doing so in round five.
Through reliable sources Americas Rugby News can confirm that Chile will be playing in the eastern Argentine city of San Juan at the Estadio Bicentenario. Pictured below the venue has a capacity of 25,286 and has been used by the UAR in the past.
Argentina’s most recent appearance at the stadium was in 2013 against Georgia. Prior outings saw Argentina hosting Italy in June 2012 and taking-on a South American XV in a Rugby World Cup 2011 warm-up match.
The city is located near the border with Chile and Los Condores indeed have played in San Juan previously. Following Rugby World Cup 2007 Los Pumas had a test against Chile in the city, winning 79-8 that December.
Rosario is also a city with hosting experience. The city’s most recent test match was a Rugby Championship match against Australia in 2013. That particular match was the final test for the most capped Puma of all-time, Felipe Contepomi. It was a repeat of the 2012 Rugby Championship match against the Wallabies while Argentina defeated Scotland on the ground in 2008.
But for this year’s Americas Rugby Championship Argentina’s home match in the city will be played at a rugby-specific venue. The city’s famous club Duendes will host the match. The clubs has produced a number of Pumas past and present. Of note are Rugby World Cup 2015 backs Juan Imhoff and Jerónimo De la Fuente.
Americas Rugby new has also learned that the possibility also exists for one or both of the home matches to be moved to Sunday. An official announcement is set to be made next week confirming the host cities, venues, dates and kick-off times.
At present the matches in Argentina are scheduled to be played on Saturday February 13 and Saturday February February 27. The fixture against Canada has also been looked at to be played on Friday February 26.
