Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE are preparing a joint bid to host the 2035 Rugby World Cup, according to reports.
This would be the first time the Rugby World Cup would be held in the Middle East, following in the footsteps of Football in bringing a major tournament to the region.
So far, none of the three countries have participated in any Rugby World Cups, and at the time of writing, the UAE are the highest ranked at 48th in the world rankings, and Qatar sit 87th. Saudi Arabia are currently not in the 118 countries on the rankings table, however.
If they were to host the World Cup, World Rugby would also have to change the rules regarding qualification to the tournament and allow the host nations to participate.
Saudi Arabia, Qatar and UAE set for huge Rugby World Cup bid for 2035 tournament
According to reports in the Times, the bid from the Middle Eastern countries is also set to be backed by Rugby Asia, which is hoping to bring a second World Cup to the continent after the success of the 2019 edition in Japan, which was won by the Springboks.
“As our leaders in the Gulf believe, nothing is impossible,” the president of Rugby Asia, Qais Al Dhalai, told the Times. “I foresee this as something that might happen in 2035.”
“I’m in favour of a multi-city hosting model, not a single host. That’s proven to work in soccer. They have done it since 2002 when Japan and Korea hosted, and are doing it again in Mexico, USA and Canada in 2026, and then again with Spain, Morocco and Portugal in 2030. Why not rugby?
“A multi-host could be a successful story and a new model for rugby. UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia. Why not? The stadiums are ready there. It will be the most successful event in the history of rugby.”
The Gulf states aren’t the only nations interested in the tournament, though, with South Africa, Italy and Spain also preparing to table bids for the Men’s 2035 World Cup.
This interest isn’t deterring the bid, though, with Qais Al Dhalai saying: “I don’t want to underestimate other bids, and I believe South Africa and other European countries might be interested as well, but if World Rugby worked hard on this with a solid plan it might happen in 2035.”
This also isn’t the first time rugby has attracted interest from the Middle East, either. Back in November, in the midst of the Autumn Nations Series, reports began to emerge that Middle Eastern backers were looking to form a breakaway LIV-style rugby competition, however, this has yet to come to fruition.
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Src: Planetrugby.com - https://www.planetrugby.com/news/saudi-arabia-qatar-and-uae-preparing-for-2035-rugby-world-cup-bid
