RWC 2003 goes operational

Speaking in Sydney, Rugby World Cup General Manager, Matt Carroll, today released an immediate action plan for preparations saying they are on track and planning would now “go operational”. He said the immediate priorities are to:

– Determine the match schedule for 48 matches across seven weeks
– Lock in venue agreements now that the sole hosting status is confirmed
– Further build the management and staff team that will plan and stage the event
– Formulate marketing communications, ticketing and advertising programmes

“We have a tight time frame but we have the plan, the experience and the people to deliver the best Rugby World Cup ever,” said Carroll. “Although the kick off is less than 18 months away, we have been on the job since winning the right to host the Cup back in 1997.

“Our plans have been signed off by the IRB in principle and some fine tuning will see us comfortably accommodate the additional 23 matches that result from being the sole host. The Rugby World Cup match schedule will embrace the nation with matches played in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Canberra as well as a number of regional centres. Which cities host which matches will not be confirmed for another month.

“Just as the Olympics caught the imagination of Australia, I expect the Rugby World Cup will do the same but with a different and more intense kind of passion, enthusiasm and interest that only rugby can generate. The excitement and celebrations that we witnessed during last year’s tour by the Lions will be seen over and over again toward the end of 2003 when twenty nations do battle for the ultimate prize in world rugby.

“The Australia Rugby Union is in the fortunate position of having excellent partnerships between venues, State and Territory Governments and the host cities. It is these partnerships that will help us deliver what we have promised. I will be traveling to Dublin next week to meet with Rugby World Cup Limited to discuss finalizing the match schedule as well as issues such as venues, timetable, ticketing, marketing, broadcasting and technology.

“We will also be building the team of people that will deliver the Rugby World Cup and preparing our communications campaign to inform people in Australia and overseas about the event. This team will also work on a range of programs such as media, tourism, volunteers, logistics, transport, security, education, accommodation, training, health and community-based celebrations.”

Carroll said following the launch there would be several milestones in the lead-up to the event:

End of 2002 – Release of ticketing programme
Beginning of 2003 – sale of tickets
Beginning of 2003 – call for volunteers
Third quarter of 2003 – arrival of the teams ahead of the pool matches and the finals in October and November 2003

“In the near future, we will be in a position to launch the event and begin telling the people of Australia about the Rugby World Cup, which is one of the most exciting events on the international sporting calendar,” Carroll continued. “While we are driven by the desire to put on the best ever Rugby World Cup, we also want to ensure that we deliver a strong and lasting legacy for Rugby Union in Australia, at both a grassroots level and financially.”