Christchurch Rugby World Cup Matches

Christchurch is very pleased at the announcement the city will host five pool games at the 2011 Rugby World Cup.

This is in addition to the two quarterfinal games the city will host - which will feature both the winner and the runner-up of the All Blacks’ pool.

“Naturally, we’re very confident this means we will see the All Blacks playing in Christchurch,” said Mayor Bob Parker.

Other teams that will play in Christchurch during the tournament are Argentina, England, Australia, Italy, Scotland, and two other European teams.

“The quality of the Christchurch facilities and the city’s overall approach to the tournament are major factors behind these games being awarded to the city,” said Bob Parker. “It is a vindication of our bold step to upgrade the AMI Stadium.

“And this expression of confidence by Rugby World Cup New Zealand in our efforts so far only serves to reinforce our commitment to helping make this the best Rugby World Cup tournament ever. We are just thrilled that Christchurch will achieve its goal of playing a leading role in this tournament.“

The city is still waiting to hear which teams will be based in the city for the duration of the tournament - an announcement that RWC New Zealand will make later this year. The Christchurch Steering Group (consisting of the Christchurch City Council, Canterbury Rugby Football Union, the Police, Vbase, Christchurch & Canterbury Tourism and Canterbury Development Corporation) suggested in its bid that England, France and Australia would all be a good fit for the city.