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The USA has formally been named as host for both the 2031 and 2033 Rugby World Cups, the first a men’s tournament and the second contested by women. Results of the final vote by the World Rugby’s Council were unveiled on Thursday in Dublin.
It’s an historic occasion for the USA who have never before hosted the 15-a-side version of the World Cup. The 2018 edition of the Sevens World Cup was held in San Francisco, but the only previous 15-a-side World Cup to take place in the Americas was the 2006 women’s tournament played in Edmonton.
World Rugby’s decision was expected after they had entered in ‘exclusive targeted dialogue’ with the USA for the 2031 tournament in November. In March it was confirmed that the USA was also in discussions to host the 2033 tournament. President Joe Biden offered his support for the bid last month.
Also confirmed were England as hosts of the 2025 women’s tournament, and Australia as hosts of both the 2027 men’s tournament and 2029 women’s tournament. A change in the hosting model will see World Rugby playing a larger role in the planning and implementation of the events.
Many details for the USA’s tournaments such as timing and number of competing nations are still to be determined. The USA Bid team has already provided a list of potential host cities though venues were not specified. Vancouver had initially been included but there were no Canadian cities named on the most recent list.
As part of the build-up to the two tournaments, USA Rugby says it will focus on building participation among youth and underrepresented communities. Its goal is to reach a membership of 450,000 by 2031, up from the current level of 109,000 registered members.
