'We're confident': The USA have officially launched World Cup bid

USA Rugby have officially launched their bid to host the 2027 or 2031 World Cup and become the first country in North or South America to stage the tournament. Cities such as Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Chicago and New York have expressed an interest in holding games, some of which would be played in NFL stadiums.

The organisation is also bidding for the 2029 Women’s World Cup, with January the deadline for submissions for the events. USA Rugby World Cup bid chairman Jim Brown said: “This is a proud moment as we introduce our vision for a World Cup on American soil.

“We are confident in the strength of this bid, the support around us, the cities and stadiums interested in hosting, our country’s top-level infrastructure for large-scale sports events and the opportunity the US population of sports fans presents for rugby’s growth, both domestically and globally.”

The announcements come with the USA rugby community gathering in Washington ahead of the Eagles match versus the All Blacks this Saturday. The team behind the bid has been hard at work since the United States announced it had been formally accepted as a bid candidate in June 2021 following a robust and successful feasibility study.

New research conducted by the bid team revealed that when asked, 80 per cent of sports fans and 93 per cent of rugby fans said they support the USA hosting the men’s and women’s World Cups in the near future. Additionally, 78 per cent of sports fans and 90 per cent of rugby fans believe the United States is well-equipped to host. 

“A Rugby World Cup in the United States is a turning point for the game,” said USA Rugby CEO Ross Young. “An exciting, unique, global sporting event of this scale on American soil for the first time has the potential to bring tried and true rugby fans, new supporters of the sport, USA fans and fans from around the world together through our great game. 

"The Rugby World Cup also presents incredible opportunity to unite our rugby communities and truly grow the sport from youth programs to our senior national teams – injecting fan support and financial interest and creating a new generation of American rugby players.”