Waugh driven to rewrite history as Sydney secures 2027 Rugby World Cup Final

On one of the proudest days of his post-rugby career standing in front of the Sydney Harbour Bridge to announce that Sydney will host the Rugby World Cup final, Phil Waugh was brought back to a painful memory.

Waugh was the Wallaby tasked with trying to chase down Jonny Wilkinson’s drop goal attempt in the 2003 final at Sydney Olympic Park, but couldn’t stop the kick sailing through the posts as England sealed a famous 20-17 win in extra time. In 2027, Waugh finally gets a shot at redemption, this time as boss of Rugby Australia, with the William Webb Ellis trophy again up for grabs at home.

“Every time you look at Rugby World Cup in 2003 it comes down to Jonny’s right foot and I’m there chasing, or trying to chase him. I did a pretty good job of chasing him for 97 minutes, but unfortunately that last one, he hit pretty well,” Waugh said.

“That event back in 2003 captured all Australians, not just sporting fans, when I had a gold jersey on back then it was a huge honour and privilege, but it was also a massive responsibility to perform and to win. I see the same responsibility now, the same privilege, same honour, but also the same responsibility in the role I’m in now to ensure that we get the right level of performance in 2027.”

While an 11th-hour deal to play nine games in Melbourne saved Victorian blushes, Sydney has secured the prized jewels, with the Harbour City to host the final and semi-finals of the 2027 tournament. The NSW government estimate the tournament will inject $610 million into the state’s economy.

Officials from World Rugby and Rugby Australia gathered in Sydney on Thursday to announce the host cities for the 2027 event.

The 2003 Rugby World Cup final at Homebush.Credit: Fiona-Lee Quimby

Accor Stadium at Sydney Olympic Park has been confirmed as the venue for 2027’s final, and the 82,000-seat venue will also host the bronze medal match.

Between Accor Stadium and Moore Park’s Allianz Stadium, Sydney will also host five pool matches, two round of 16 matches and two quarter-finals.

World Cup fixtures are also confirmed for Newcastle, Adelaide and Townsville. Tournament organisers won’t lock in a final schedule until the draw is held at the end of the year. World Rugby also hopes to name the final stadiums for games in the next three months.

The host cities’ announcement comes almost three years after Australia won the rights to host the 2027 World Cup under a new joint-venture model, under which World Rugby and RA will organise the tournament as partners. It also comes four years after RA first sought expressions of interest from state governments to bid for packages of pool games and finals.

The Victorian government initially made a major push for the Melbourne Cricket Ground to host the final and semi-finals, selling the vision of a record crowd in a World Cup final at the 100,000-seat venue.

Melbourne will instead host seven pool matches and two round of 16 matches split between the 25,500-capacity AAMI Park and the MCG. Brisbane will host two quarter-finals, two round of 16 matches and six pool matches. Canberra has missed out altogether.

Former Brumbies captain and new World Rugby chair Brett Robinson admitted that he was disappointed that Canberra will not host any games, but admitted that the decision came down to a lack of suitable stadia.

“It’s disappointing that we haven’t got the stadium, I’ve got a few chips on my shoulders, as most Brumbies do ... we’d love to be competitive, but we have a wonderful rugby community, playing at home in Canberra is a wonderful place to play the game,” Robinson said.

RA says the 2027 World Cup will inject $2.5 billion into the Australian economy.Credit: Getty Images

“It’s just we haven’t got the facilities really to compete on the scale of this tournament, which is a disappointment, but as I said, I’ve got no doubt that there’ll be people driving down the highway to Stadium Australia.”

Victoria’s initial bid was lower than the NSW offer, according to informed sources who spoke on condition of anonymity, and when the call for best and final offers was made last year, the Victorian government instead withdrew.

The shutdown of the Melbourne Rebels in 2024 was floated as a factor in walking away, but if that was intended to punish RA, it was misguided, given World Rugby were chief negotiators and had already agreed to pay RA a flat $100 million fee as part of the new joint venture structure.

Sources familiar with the negotiation, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the Victorian government’s withdrawal was more related to the state’s financial struggles, and cuts in major event spending.

Chief Executive of World Rugby Alan Gilpin disputed that the Victorian government’s late change of heart affected Melbourne’s ability to host semi-finals.

“I don’t think it affected their ability to do it, I think they’ve (Victoria) worked through what’s going to work for them in terms of content,” Gilpin said. “Again, New South Wales and Sydney in particular, have really stepped into that space and I was lucky enough to be part of the Rugby World Cup here in 2003 and this part of the country was a brilliant centrepiece for Rugby World Cup and it will be again in 2027.”

After cutting RA a $100 million cheque, World Rugby will keep all revenues from the tournament and use it to fund the game for the next four years.

Perth’s Optus Stadium was considered as a quarter-final venue, but there were concerns about the fairness of two of the last four teams having to fly across Australia to play in the semi-finals in Sydney.

Optus Stadium was in the mix for the final, but the 60,000-seat venue will instead host the opening game, featuring the Wallabies, alongside five pool matches and two round of 16 matches. The WA venue is not only in a friendlier time zone for Europe, but it will also help avoid a probable clash with the NRL grand final on the first weekend of October.

The rest of the tournament will be played in clear air after RA successfully lobbied for the World Cup to be moved from its usual September-October window to start on October 1 and finish on November 13.

World Rugby agreed in 2023 to the change, which will also ensure the clean stadiums – without existing signage – required by World Rugby to run the tournament. The NRL and AFL have long-term agreements with Accor Stadium and the MCG, meaning World Rugby would have needed to make a shift or stage big games at smaller venues.

RA is forecasting the 2027 World Cup will inject $2.5 billion into the Australian economy.