Radical plan to expand 2027 Rugby World Cup forces officials to delay call on which city will host final

The decision on which Australian city will be chosen to host the final of the 2027 Rugby World Cup has been put on hold because of a radical plan set to drastically change the tournament.

Australia will host the 2027 Rugby World Cup. Picture: Getty Images

The eagerly-anticipated decision on which Australian city will be chosen to host the final of the 2027 Rugby World Cup has been put on hold until next year because of a dramatic late twist that could see the world’s third biggest sport event expand even further.

Sydney, Melbourne and Perth have all put their hands in the ring to host the final, which is expected to bring in millions of tourism dollars.

An announcement on the winning city was scheduled to be made during the current World Cup in France but this masthead has learnt the decision has now been put on hold because of a radical plan to expand the tournament.

Currently restricted to 20 teams, rugby officials are considering whether to increase the 2027 Rugby World Cup to a record 24 countries - which would add more games and bring millions more for Australia in ticket sales and broadcast sales.

It was originally proposed that the Rugby World Cup would be widened to 24 teams in 2031 - when the tournament goes to the United States - but the incredible success of the women’s FIFA World Cup co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand has caused a rethink.

Australia will host the 2027 Rugby World Cup. Picture: AFP Images

Like everyday Aussies, World Rugby officials were blown away by the incredible response to the Matildas so want to tap into that for 2027 rather than wait until the game’s tournament goes to America.

While no final decisions have been made yet, sources at World Rugby have told this masthead that the sport’s ambitious officials were so impressed by Australia’s hosting of the women’s soccer tournament that changes could be fast-tracked.

The rethink has caused World Rugby officials to delay the decision on where the biggest matches - including the final will be held - until next year.

Sydney, which hosted the 2003 World Cup final, is considered the favourite to be picked for the final but there is no guarantee with World Rugby very open to alternatives.

Money talks and although unusual, it is not without precedence for the final to be moved.

Originally scheduled to take place in Tokyo, the 2019 final was moved to Yokohama.

It’s understood 2027 is already a highly competitive tender with the NSW, Victorian and Western Australia state governments all going in with massive bids knowing the enormous tourism dollars at stake.

The other states can’t bid for the final because their stadiums are too small but are aggressively going after other matches.

Phil Kearns, the leader of the high-powered bid team that won the right to host the 2027 World Cup plus the women’s 2029 tournament, confirmed to this masthead that a decision on where the final would be played had been pushed back to 2024.

While the details are still be worked out but Rugby Australia boss Hamish McLennan also confirmed the possibility of an expanded competition would be a huge windfall for Australia with all matches expected to be sold out.

“For ‘27, we expect great contestability between the heartland states of Queensland and NSW and the emerging power States of WA, SA and Victoria,” he said.

“We‘ll settle on the allocation of the pool games and finals three to six months after this World Cup in France.

“Given the success of the Matildas at the recent soccer World Cup, we’re expecting massive interest for the Women’s Rugby World Cup in ’29.”

Originally published as Radical plan to expand 2027 Rugby World Cup forces officials to delay call on which city will host final