Sydney's Olympic stadium to host Rugby World Cup final in 2027

SYDNEY (AP) — Sydney's 83,000-seat Olympic Stadium will once again host a Rugby World Cup final, this time in 2027 and 24 years after the home team was left bitterly disappointed in the championship match against England.

RWC 2027 organizers announced Thursday that Sydney would host five pool matches, two round-of-16 matches, two quarterfinals, both semifinals, the bronze match and the tournament finale.

They also announced six other host cities for the 24-team tournament scheduled to run from Oct. 1 to Nov. 13, 2027.

They were Melbourne (seven pool matches and two round-of-16 matches), Brisbane (six pool matches, two round-of 16 matches and two quarterfinals), Perth (five pool matches, including the tournament opener, and two round of 16 matches), and Adelaide (five pool matches).

The other two host cities will be Newcastle, which is located north of Sydney, and Townsville in north Queensland state. They will host four pool matches each.

In the 2003 final Jonny Wilkinson landed a dropped goal with seconds remaining in extra time to give England a 20-17 victory over the Wallabies in front of a Rugby World Cup-record crowd of 82,957 at the stadium built for the 2000 Olympics.

Four countries have won the World Cup trophy. South Africa became the first to win it four times when the Springboks beat New Zealand in France in 2023. New Zealand has won it three times, Australia twice and England once.

“Rugby World Cup is among the planet’s biggest sporting events and Australia is incredibly excited to welcome the world to the 2027 edition," Rugby Australia chief executive and former Wallaby Phil Waugh said.

“Australia has a rich history of hosting major tournaments — indeed, we co-hosted the first ever Rugby World Cup almost 40 years ago (1987, with New Zealand) — and I have no doubt this event will captivate and enthrall the hundreds of thousands attending in-stadium and the hundreds of millions viewing around the world.”

Organizers said they expected 250,000 international visitors over the tournament's six-week run would generate 1.3 billion Australian dollars ($811 million) in direct visitor expenditure in Australia.

Australia co-hosted the inaugural Rugby World Cup in 1987, won it in 1991 and ‘99 — both times in Britain — and reached the final in 2003 and 2015. Australia will host the British and Irish Lions tour mid-year and also stage men’s and women's Rugby World Cups before Brisbane hosts the Olympics in 2032.

“Australia is renowned throughout the world for hosting outstanding global sporting events and I have no doubt the Rugby World Cup 2027 will live up to those lofty standards,” Rugby Australia chairman and 1999 World Cup-winning Wallaby Daniel Herbert said. “The opportunity for Australian rugby over the next few years with the British and Irish Lions visit, two World Cups and a home Olympics is truly extraordinary and one we are ready to build upon."

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The Associated Press