Spain tear Germany apart in front of 15,000 crowd

Spain are one win away from a place at Rugby World Cup 2019 after recording a comprehensive 84-10 win over Germany in front of King Felipe VI of Spain and the Webb Ellis Cup in Madrid on Sunday.

With Romania having scored a bonus-point win over Belgium, Spain are now three points behind The Oaks in European qualification with a game in hand, and a win against Belgium in Brussels next weekend will see them qualify for the first time since 1999.

The team that finishes top in the Rugby Europe Championship standings over 2017-18 (other than Georgia) will qualify into Pool A alongside Ireland, Scotland, hosts Japan and the Play-Off winner.

The runner-up will play Portugal in a play-off with the winner progressing to play Samoa home and away. The winner on aggregate will qualify in Pool A, while the loser will face the four-team Repechage in November.

A sell-out 15,000 crowd cheered and sang Los Leones all the way home with a carnival atmosphere enhanced by the attendance of King Felipe VI and the coveted Webb Ellis Cup. The King, who is known to enjoy rugby, greeted the Cup and the teams ahead of the match.

The Cup was in Madrid as part of the Rugby World Cup 2019 tophy tour, which will visit 18 nations in the build-up to Asia’s first Rugby World Cup, exciting and engaging fans in new and emerging rugby markets in a bid to grow the game ahead of 2019.

Rugby fans across Spain had the opportunity to be part of the Rugby World Cup 2019 trophy tour as the Webb Ellis Cup was displayed in the stadium’s official fan zone on Sunday.

Earlier in the week the Cup was formally welcomed by the National Sports Council in Madrid, visited one of Madrid’s oldest clubs, CD Arquitectura, and visited local youth and women’s rugby programmes that encourage players of all ages to Try, Play and Stay in rugby as part of World Rugby’s Get into Rugby programme.

Members of the last Spanish side to qualify for a Rugby World Cup in 1999 also attended the match in Madrid, adding to the carnival atmosphere.