Rugby World Cup 2031 to move to SUMMER to avoid stadium clash?

The Rugby World Cup, which typically takes place from September to October, may have a new slot in 2031 in the United States.

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The Rugby World Cup , which typically takes place from September to October, may have a new slot in 2031 in the United States . For the latest Rugby World Cup 2031 news, bookmark The South African website’s dedicated section for free-to-read content With the NFL season traditionally beginning in early September, World Cup organisers are wary of failing to capture the imagination of the American public with any clash. The September-October period would overlap with both the 2031 NFL season and the 2031 Major League Soccer season.

That could cause problems for the dates of the 2030/2031 season for domestic leagues and could see players running out in sweltering temperatures depending on the host cities. Many of the proposed venues for the tournament are NFL stadiums and MLS stadiums. A final decision regarding a shift to July-August is yet to be made.



The 2031 Rugby World Cup will be the 12th edition of the tournament, the quadrennial world championship for men’s rugby union teams. This will be the first time the tournament is held in the Americas. Host nation selection USA Rugby officially launched their bid to host the 2027 or 2031 editions of the Rugby World Cup in October 2021, while in February the same year, England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland had considered a joint bid to host the 2031 edition.

At the time, the United States was the only bidder for the 2031 Rugby World Cup and the following month (November 2021) were in an “exclusive targeted dialogue” with World Rugby with regard to hosting the 2031 edition. In April 2022, President Joe Biden sent a letter of support to World Rugby affirming his support for the bid. On May 12, 2022, World Rugby announced the United States had won the bid to host the 2031 Rugby World Cup.

Expansion and format The Rugby World Cup will expand from 20 to 24 teams at the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia. The 2031 Rugby World Cup will be the second edition of the Rugby World Cup to include 24 teams. There will be six pools consisting of four teams.

A Round of 16 will be introduced prior to the quarter-finals. A total of 52 matches will be played during the six week tournament. Candidate host cities A total of 25 cities have been shortlisted for the 2031 Rugby World Cup.

Shortlisted cities include Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Birmingham, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, Nashville, New Orleans, New York City, Orlando, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Phoenix, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington DC. Most of the proposed venues are NFL stadiums, with a number of MLB and MLS stadiums in the running as well. Among the 24 cities which are under consideration, 11 of them have been selected as host cities for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Will the United States pull off a successful Rugby World Cup 2031 tournament? Let us know by clicking on the comment tab below this article or by emailing [email protected] or sending a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website’s newsletters and follow us on @TheSAnews on X and The South African on Facebook for the latest news..