Victoria is set to be snubbed from the 2027 Rugby World Cup, with Sydney’s Accor Stadium reportedly chosen to host the final.
While no formal announcements have been made, News Corp are reporting Sydney’s 82,000-seat venue will host the showpiece event, as well as both semi-finals.
The MCG has a capacity of 100,000, but the iconic venue won’t host any matches during the six-week tournament.
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The venue has hosted rugby matches in the past and will host the Wallabies’ clash against the British and Irish Lions in July.
Melbourne also has Marvel Stadium, which hosted matches in the 2003 edition, and AAMI Park as potential venues, but neither will be used.
The report states that Victoria has been shut out completely after the state government withdrew its bid in a protest over the decision to remove the Rebels from Super Rugby, which had nothing to do with World Rugby.
A packed house watched the Wallabies lose to England in the 2003 World Cup final. Credit: Getty
It means Accor Stadium will host the final, 24 years after the famous 2003 showpiece, which saw England beat Australia in a thrilling final.
The report also states that Perth’s Optus Stadium is looming as the front-runner to host the opening match of the tournament, which is certain to involve the Wallabies.
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Meanwhile, Rugby Australia are hopeful Joe Schmidt will still be leading the Wallabies at the World Cup.
The Wallabies have made huge progress since Schmidt took over the reins in 2024, with players and fans alike pleading for the Kiwi coach to remain at the helm through to the next World Cup in Australia in 2027.
On their recent UK tour, the Australians posted wins against England and Wales and were unlucky not to upset heavyweights Ireland in Dublin.
“We’ve been working through with Joe, he’s still overseas and coming back this week, so we expect to sit down with Joe and work through the plan post-Lions,” RA boss Phil said last month.
“He’s done a lot of heavy lifting and there’s been progress in the Wallabies environment, and he’s surrounded himself with really good people.
“Now it’s important to give players and staff certainty over the next few weeks.”
He said RA was working through a “contingency plan” should Schmidt not commit until the World Cup, with Australia’s Super Rugby coaches the obvious candidates.
“We’re working through what that may look like, which is appropriate business practice when you don’t have certain outcomes,” Waugh said.
“I think Joe was quite overt around the fact that he saw his responsibility in elevating Australia and also providing a platform for an Australian to take over when he does finish up.
“If you look across our Super Rugby clubs now the four head coaches across the system – Simon Cron is a strong coach at the Force, you’ve got Stephen Larkin at the Brumbies, Les Kiss in Queensland and Dan McKellar at NSW, so we’ve got four very strong coaches in our system.
“I think that we’re well positioned.”
– With AAP
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