Singapore, Hon Kong withdraw from co-hosting Rugby World Cup 2019 – Rugby News
Singapore and Hong Kong have withdrawn from their offer to co-host Rugby World Cup 2019, with Japan. Both countries were supposed to share some of the Rugby World Cup pool matches with Japan, but they withdrew their names today morning.
Japan Rugby Football Union president, Yoshiro Mori, confirmed the news and said that Singapore and Hong Kong have informed JRFU, that they will not share any match of RWC with Japan. Japan was given rights of staging the Rugby World in July 2009, after it
insisted to organise the largest event of 2019, in Asia. Furthermore, Japan promised to allocate some of the pool matches to Singapore and Hong Kong.
International Rugby Board cleared that no match could be staged in other than the hosting country, unless there was any strong reason.
Talking to the reporters along with IRB chairman, Bernard Lapasset, who was on an inspection tour, Japan RFU president, Mori, said, “Hong Kong and Singapore have told us they are withdrawing. Japan will host the tournament on its own.”
Yashiro Mori further said that some of the pool matches planned to be played in Singapore and Hong Kong were intended to attract new rugby fans. Hong Kong is the largest home Rugby Sevens and if some of the Rugby World Cup matches were staged there, it could
have generated large opportunities of business and entertainment.
Lapasset said that the decision was taken after consulting with Japan. He added that IRB was satisfied with the preparations made by Japan, with regards to RWC 2019. Recently, some parts of Japan were hit by a Tsunami, on March 11.
Lapasset further added, “We are all right behind the Japan rugby community and the tournament and I have no doubt that Rugby World Cup 2019 will be a tournament that Japan and the global rugby family will be proud of. Rugby is built on the values of solidarity
and friendship and I know that the JRFU has been overwhelmed by the messages of support and sympathy from the global rugby family.”
The 2019 Rugby World Cup will be staged in Asia, for the very first time in the history of the sport.
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