The United States has thrown its hat into the ring to host the Rugby World Cup, with USA Rugby clearing the first hurdle in an attempt to bring the game’s global showpiece to North America for either the 2027, 2029 or 2031 events.
USA Rugby was on Thursday “formally accepted” as one of the candidates for the three tournaments, all of which are being awarded in the middle of 2022.
The organisation had been conducting a feasibility study into the country’s readiness to host the tournament since 2020, and it will now turn its focus to preparing a formal bid for one or more of the tournaments before the closing deadline of January next year.
USA Rugby could host either of the 2027 or 2031 men’s tournaments while the 2029 women’s tournament is also up for grabs.
“Putting our hand up to host a Rugby World Cup is a benchmark for the game in America, however the exciting stages are just now beginning as the stakeholder group continues into campaign planning,” USA Rugby CEO and former General Manager to Rugby World Cup, Ross Young said.
“The great work this group of subject matter experts, led by former Director Jim Brown, has done supersedes what has happened previously at this stage, and truly highlights the potential for a Rugby World Cup being held on American soil.”
It may be that the USA Rugby decides to focus on the 2029 women’s tournament followed by the 2031 men’s edition two years later, creating what would be a huge three years for the code in a market it is desperate to crack.
Australia is also well and truly on the front foot for the 2027 tournament having launched its bid last month, and the nation may be seen as the safer alternative for the event given its existing standing in rugby globally.
But the United States at last appears to be making headway in growing the game domestically with the professional Major League Rugby expanding into new markets in 2021 in what is its fourth season of existence.
The introduction of the LA Giltinis, who have played games at the LA Coliseum and SoFi Stadium, has created global rugby headlines and helped to garner greater attention for the fledgling league with their playing roster of star former international players.
And USA Rugby is confident that fan engagement can continue to grow in the lead-up to any potential World Cup hosted by the United States.
“In August, we set out to do a full evaluation and expert analysis to answer a question long asked, can the United States host a Rugby World Cup?” Jim Brown, USA Rugby World Cup Bid Chair, said.
“The process was an undertaking; however, we are delighted to confirm that the U.S. could not only meet the technical requirements of hosting the men’s and women’s events, but also reach new levels of team and fan experience. We look forward to sharing results with the USA Rugby community and begin this journey towards rugby’s biggest stage.”
Just two years ago the Rugby World Cup broke new ground when it was hosted in Asia for the first time, with Japan turning on an event to remember. The Japanese team also reach the quarterfinals of the event for the first time, topping their pool with victories over Tier 1 rugby nations Ireland and Scotland.
The 2019 tournament only further whet the appetite of World Rugby administrators to solidify the game’s global footprint with the United States deemed a key target.
World Rugby executives are pleased the USA Rugby had progressed in its journey to bring the game’s global showpiece to the U.S.
“The work accomplished by Jim Brown and the USA Rugby World Cup feasibility group was well received at the World Rugby level,” Bob Latham, USA Rugby Council Representative and World Rugby Executive Committee member, said.
“USA Rugby has cleared an important first hurdle by establishing our capability to present a credible and compelling bid at this stage in the process. The prospect is exciting, and I hope that everyone with an interest in the future of rugby in America will come together to support this effort.”
EUGENE, Ore. — Bo Nix threw three touchdown passes and No. 10 Oregon emphatically slammed the brakes on Coach Prime’s “Cinderella story,” routing No. 19 Colorado 42-6 on Saturday.
The Ducks (4-0, 1-0 Pac-12) were up 35-0 half after coach Dan Lanning sent them into the matchup of unbeatens with a fiery pregame speech that took direct aim at the star-studded, hype machine that has followed coach Deion Sanders’ team for the first three weeks of the season.
“The Cinderella story’s over, men. They’re fighting for clicks, we’re fighting for wins. There’s a difference,” Lanning told his team in front of ESPN’s cameras.
Troy Franklin caught eight passes for 126 yards and two scores for Oregon.
Sanders turned around a Colorado program that won just one game last year, bringing aboard 67 new scholarship players and opening the season with wins over TCU, Nebraska and last weekend’s double-overtime thriller against Colorado State.
He got a nice welcome to Autzen Stadium before the game from Nike co-founder Phil Knight, the patriarch of Oregon sports. And former NFL star Terrell Owens made the trip to see his friend coach.
Oregon’s duck mascot came out on the field wearing a cowboy hat and sunglasses, copying Sanders’ style.
It was a big-game atmosphere, but the Buffs (3-1, 0-1) were no match for the Ducks.
Nix completed his first 11 passes and 28 of 33 before he was pulled to start the fourth quarter. He also ran for an 11-yard TD. One fan held a sign that said: “This is Nix Country.”
Coach Prime’s son Shedeur Sanders went into Saturday averaging 417.0 passing yards per game, with 10 touchdowns against one interception. He completed 23 of 33 passes for 159 yards and a late touchdown against the Ducks. He was sacked seven times.
Colorado finished with 199 yards of total offense, as the fans at Autzen Stadium chanted “Overrated!” in the final moments of the game.
On their first series of the game, the Ducks went 72 yards in 10 plays capped by a 3-yard touchdown run by Noah Wittington. Colorado punted on its first series.
Nix threw a 1-yard pass to Casey Kelly to make it 13-0, capitalizing on a pair of Colorado penalties inside the 10. Oregon’s 2-point attempt failed. The Buffaloes punted again on the next drive.
Nix found Franklin with a 16-yard scoring pass and this time the 2-point conversion was good to put the Ducks up 21-0.
Nix was intercepted for the first time this season in the second quarter. It was also Oregon’s first turnover of the year. But the Ducks’ defense sacked Shedeur Sanders on third down, pushing him back 16 years, and Colorado again was forced to punt.
Franklin was wide open running into the endzone for a 36-yard touchdown from Nix, and Nix ran for another TD to cap the first half onslaught.
Jordan James padded Oregon’s lead with a 1-yard touchdown dash, for his sixth TD this season. Colorado avoided the shutout with Shedeur Sanders’ a 6-yard pass to Michael Harrison.
It was Colorado’s first game without two-way standout Travis Hunter, who was sent to the hospital with a lacerated liver from a late hit in the game last weekend against Colorado State.
Hunter had nine tackles, two pass breakups and an interception and also had 16 catches for 213 yards on offense.
Marlins stay in wild-card hunt, prevent Brewers from clinching NL Central with 5-4 win
— Jake Burger hit a three-run homer, the Marlins scored the tie-breaking run in the eighth inning and Miami beat Milwaukee 5-4 on Saturday to stay within a game of the Cubs for the third NL wild card and prevent the Brewers from clinching the NL Central.
Haley Van Voorhis, a safety at Division-III Shenandoah University, became the first woman non-kicker to appear in an NCAA football game on Saturday against Juniata.
She came on in the first quarter and registered a quarterback hurry on third down.
A 5-foot-6, 145-pound junior, Van Voorhis spent the past two seasons playing on junior varsity. The Plains, Virginia, native went to high school at Christchurch and was 2019 All-State Honorable Mention. Her senior season was cancelled because of COVID-19.
Van Voorhis is also a member of Shenandoah’s track and field team, running sprints.
In 2014, defensive back Shelby Osborne became the first woman non-kicker to participate in an NAIA program at Campbellsville University. However, she did not appear in a game.
Multiple women have played kicking positions in college football. In 2003, Katie Hnida became the first woman to score in an NCAA Division I-A football game as the placekicker at New Mexico. Seventeen years later, Sarah Fuller became the first woman to score in a Power 5 football game as the kicker for Vanderbilt.
In an interview with ESPN in 2021, Van Voorhis said she’s used to people pointing out that she’s the only girl playing football, whether it was during Pop Warner or high school.
“There’s definitely people out there who see the story and think, ‘This girl’s going to get hurt,'” she said. “I hear that a lot. Or, ‘She’s too small, doesn’t weigh enough, not tall enough.’ But I’m not the shortest on my team, and I’m not the lightest.”
Shenandoah coach Scott Yoder told ESPN in 2021 that Van Voorhis is “very determined” young person.
“What has really helped me has been when you peel everything back it’s about a young person who wants an opportunity, who works for it and has earned an opportunity,” he said. “For 21 years I’ve been fortunate to be on the coaching side of that. And at the core of this, it’s no different.”