Auckland set to stage 2011 World Cup final, semis
23/08/2007 |
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The 2011 World Cup final and both semi-finals are likely to be played at Auckland's revamped Eden Park stadium, New Zealand officials said on Thursday.
Officials are still considering the idea of playing the semi-finals in Wellington and Christchurch but are leaning towards playing them both in Auckland -- which has already been confirmed as the venue for the final.
The tournament's chief executive, Martin Snedden, said he was still in discussions with Wellington and Christchurch officials but that even they agreed from a logistical and financial standpoint it made sense to play the matches in Auckland.
"They will need magical answers to logistical challenges to be in consideration," Snedden told the New Zealand Press Association.
"We gave them the challenge of giving us cause to doubt and there was nothing. They actually think it's right."
Eden Park is New Zealand's biggest stadium and was the venue for the inaugural World Cup final in 1987, when New Zealand beat France for the title.
The stadium will hold a crowd of around 62,000 spectators when it is complete, almost 20,000 more than both Wellington and Christchurch.
It is not unusual for the semi-finals of the World Cup to be played in one city, with Sydney staging them in 2003 and Paris set to host them at this year's tournament in September and October.
Christchurch and Wellington are both likely to be awarded quarter-finals although the competition format is still to be decided.
International Rugby Board officials are considering reducing the tournament from 20 to 16 teams to cut costs and avoid lopsided games.
(Source: Guardian.co.uk)
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