One of the world's biggest sporting events is coming to Melbourne, with the Allan Labor Government today announcing Melbourne will be a host city during the Rugby World Cup in 2027.
The Rugby World Cup is set to take place in Australia between 1 October and 13 November 2027, with more than 140,000 visitors expected to travel to Australia for the tournament - in a major boost for our restaurants and hotels.
While the match schedule will not be finalised for some time, the gaps between games will encourage visitors to explore regional Victoria while they're here, while the major matches will secure strong media coverage into important international markets like the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Europe and Japan.
The Rugby World Cup will be contested by 24 countries, broken into six pools of four teams, with the top two teams from each pool and the four 'next best' third-placed teams qualifying for the knockout stages.
The last time the Rugby World Cup was staged in Australia was 2003, where Melbourne hosted seven matches at Docklands Stadium attracting more than 85,000 interstate and international visitors and generating $169 million in economic impact for the state. The 2027 World Cup promises to be even bigger.
Victoria has a proven track record hosting major international events and continues to break record attendance levels at the Boxing Day Test and Australian Open.
International rugby is a favourite of Victorian sports fans, with almost 84,000 people packing into the MCG for the Bledisloe Cup match between the Wallabies and the All Blacks in 2023 - the largest crowd for an international rugby match on Australian soil in more than 20 years.
Additionally, tens of thousands of fans from interstate and overseas will visit Melbourne for the British & Irish Lions tour in July this year, with matches to be played at the MCG and Marvel Stadium.
The addition of Rugby World Cup adds to our long term blockbuster pipeline of major sporting events - with the Australian Open secured at Melbourne Park until at least 2046, the Formula 1 Grand Prix secured until 2037, the AFL Grand Final secured at the MCG until at least 2059 and the Boxing Day Test until 2030.
As stated by Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events Steve Dimopoulos
"The addition of the Rugby World Cup 2027 reinforces Victoria's status as a global leader in major events, drawing fans from around the world and driving tourism - contributing to our $39.7 billion visitor economy."
"International rugby has a wonderful history here. We've seen huge interest in the Bledisloe Cup in recent years and the British and Irish Lions tour in July 2025 promises to be huge. There's no doubt the World Cup will be a major drawcard in 2027."
"The Rugby World Cup has a massive global audience and hosting games in Melbourne means the best of Victoria will be shown around the world to the millions of viewers and attract visitors from key markets."
As stated by Visit Victoria CEO Brendan McClements
"The Rugby World Cup is the latest addition to a fantastic pipeline of major events we are hosting across the state, including the British and Irish Lions Tour, the Formula 1 Grand Prix and the Yayoi Kusama exhibition at the NGV."
As stated by World Rugby Chair Brett Robinson
"Thanks to the Premier and the Victorian Government for believing in an event that will deliver significant social, economic and sporting benefits."
