Adelaide Oval set to host Bledisloe Cup blockbuster in 2021
It is one of the world’s most iconic sporting rivalries. And now Rugby Australia wants to bring the Wallabies and All Blacks together on Adelaide Oval’s hallowed turf for a Bledisloe Cup clash.
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Adelaide Oval is set to be the setting for another bumper international event with Rugby Australia fixing its sights on the hallowed turf for a home Bledisloe Cup clash in 2021.
Rugby Australia officials this week met with the State Government and Stadium Management Authority and had a tour of the venue, confirming they wanted the Australian leg of the traditional Wallabies-All Blacks series in South Australia.
It is set to be played in August or September as one of just two matches in the 2021 series as rugby’s international federation tweaks the calendar to usher in its annual Nations Championship concept in 2022.
The Bledisloe Cup is essentially Adelaide’s to lose: the biggest hurdle now is to find the right spot in the calendar and make sure it has the financial backing.
Insiders say the investment would bring a return of $8 for every dollar spent with a big influx of tourists expected if the match goes ahead.
It would be the first time the Wallabies have played in Adelaide since a 2004 Test against Pacific Islanders and the first Bledisloe Cup match — and the famous Haka performed by the New Zealanders — on South Australian soil.
Rugby Australia chief executive Raelene Castle told The Advertiser negotiations had been progressing well.
“We’ve certainly had some really promising discussions with the Government today,” Castle said. “They are very excited about the opportunity of the Bledisloe and we are hopeful that we can find a commercial platform or agreement that allows us to have it here.
“It would be in the August-September timeframe which does have some challenges with our AFL friends but we’d love to work through that with them to try to find a way so that we wouldn’t interfere with their season but also deliver a Bledisloe.
“But we would definitely like to bring a game to Adelaide.
“Whether it be through a Bledisloe Cup or, and we’re having conversations about this, a potential Lions tour.
“Between those two options I’d be very confident that we can get a game here.”
Ahead of the Rugby World Cup in Japan from September 20, this year’s Bledisloe Cup will be played at Perth’s new Optus Stadium on August 10 and at Eden Park in Auckland on August 17.
The WA Government is believed to have paid Rugby Australia $5 million to host the game.
The Wallabies last held the Bledisloe Cup in 2002.
The All Blacks claimed a clean sweep of Bledisloe wins in 2018, including the third match in Yokohama, Japan in October.
Castle, who was at the launch of Rugby SA’s season launch in the city on Wednesday night, said a key consideration before the 2021 event was locked in was the date.
But she had been chuffed with the state of the game in South Australia, which had recorded significant growth both in the men’s and the women’s game.
“There’s two parts,” she said. “One is the timing — we’re just trying to finalise our calendar because of the work that’s happening with the world nations championships — and it’s important for us to bring a game here.
“We also need to make sure we have the commercial backing.
“But rugby in SA is in great shape.
“The passion of the rugby community, the innovation to grow numbers … the 15s is growing and the women’s game is just going from strength to strength and the optimism and willingness to be inclusive is really delivering for them.”
Adelaide Oval will play host to a match in Australian rugby league’s showpiece event, the State of Origin series, for the first time next year.
Originally published as Adelaide Oval set to host Bledisloe Cup blockbuster in 2021