The 2035 Rugby World Cup final could be staged at the revamped Camp Nou in Barcelona with the Spanish rugby federation in discussions with La Liga over using celebrated soccer stadiums as part of its bid to host the tournament.
Delegates from the Spanish federation met World Rugby executives last weekend to demonstrate their intentions to host the tournament in 2035 and discussions are said to have piqued interest.
The Camp Nou is undergoing a 1.5 billion euro (US$1.65 billion) refurbishment and is set to reopen with a 105,000 capacity in June next year, while Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu has recently undergone a similar facelift.
Photo: Reuters
Using both venues for a first World Cup in Spain has obvious appeal, while the San Mames Stadium in Bilbao hosted the Champions Cup final in 2018 and would do so again next year.
Spain’s closest rival for the 2035 tournament is likely to be Italy with an expectation that, with Australia hosting the 2027 World Cup and the US staging the 2031 edition, 2035 would mark a return to Europe.
Japan are considered the early frontrunner for what is likely to be a World Cup in Asia in 2039, but there is interest from the Middle East and although there are hurdles to overcome, the financial incentives are clear.
Spain last appeared at the World Cup in 1999 — they won a place at the 2023 tournament, but were expelled for breaching eligibility regulations in qualifying. However, they have already booked their spot for the 2027 competition.
The women’s side has also qualified for the World Cup this year in England while Spain have made significant strides on the sevens circuit. A decision is expected to be made before the 2027 World Cup in Australia.
“Spain is interesting because it’s an extension of the European market, 50 million people, quality stadiums, passionate support and culture,” World Rugby chair Brett Robinson said.
“Their high-performance investment and focus in recent years has been at a pace where you’ve got two teams in [the Hong Kong sevens] tournament who are really competitive, he said.
“The men’s team has qualified for the 2027 World Cup, the women’s World Cup this year. Is there a European competition where you do something with Italy, with the UK?” he added.
Spain’s bid appeals in part because World Rugby has dealt with a number of the logistics that would be encountered, such as discussing clashes with domestic soccer and UEFA Champions League calendars, as recently as 2023 when France hosted the World Cup.
“The Spanish federation and Spanish government have had conversations with La Liga,” World Rugby’s chief executive Alan Gilpin said.
“When we’ve had tournaments before in England or in France in 2023, there’s been that conversation about we need you, Tottenham, to play two matches away in a row. It’s the same conversation with Spain. As we understand it, it’s with La Liga about whether they would support [it] and it seems to be [the case],” he said.
“We took some big strategic decisions a few years ago to go men’s and women’s in Australia and the same in the US, and we’ve now got to think about the balance and whether we bring 2035 and 2037 back to Europe. It’s almost like a regional rotation,” he added.
“We’ve never had that discussion strategically in World Rugby before, but that’s probably the way the discussion has got to go and then maybe the Middle East needs that time until 2039, maybe they’re competing with Japan for an Asian rotation in 2039,” he said.
“None of that is set in stone, but the kind of mindset we’re starting to have is, we made a big, bold move with the US and we’re doing a hell of a lot of work in the US market, do we come back to Europe and then go to Asia again?” he added.
Meanwhile, the 2031 World Cup in the US is to remain in its traditional slot in the calendar, starting in September, despite previous suggestions it might be moved to the summer to avoid a clash with the NFL season.
“We’re having conversations now with the NFL’s scheduling department about 2031 because we’ll be in the college football season and the start of the NFL season,” Gilpin said. “The challenge in the summer, it’s a different stadium exclusivity challenge, is that it’s a massive concert season.”
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