HBS Appointed As Production Partner for Men’s and Women’s Rugby World Cups

World Rugby confirmed the continuation of its partnership with HBS (Host Broadcast Services) to produce the host broadcast for every Men’s and Women’s Rugby World Cup through to 2029.

Under this new deal, HBS will provide the full host broadcast for rugby’s showcase competitions in partnership with World Rugby, including the overall production plan, project management, provision of broadcast equipment and technology, implementation and running of the Rugby World Cup International Broadcast Centres and servicing of rights-holding broadcasters around the world with satellite distribution, unilateral venue services and content creation services.

World Rugby said it was seeking to grow rugby by increasing accessibility and relevance and that “HBS will play an active role in projecting the Women’s Rugby World Cups in England in 2025 and Australia in 2029 and the Men’s Rugby World Cup Australia 2027 to new audiences in line with the global body’s multi-platform audience growth strategy”

• Rugby World Cup France 2023 achieved 1.33 billion viewing hours, a 33 per cent increase on the 2019 edition.
• There was significant audience growth achieved in the USA and Germany among other strategic markets.
• The Women’s Rugby World Cup in New Zealand attracted record viewing audiences with over a quarter of the population in New Zealand tuning in to the final. 

>World Rugby Chief Executive Alan Gilpin said: “We are excited to be extending our successful partnership with HBS to project our major events to the world. HBS is aligned with our mission to grow rugby’s audience share by focusing on accessibility and relevance and we are both motivated by this challenge.

At the heart of this partnership is innovation and we are looking forward to working with HBS teams to find creative ways to bring the Rugby World Cup to fans around the world in a way they haven’t experienced it before, while finding the necessary efficiencies to limit the environmental impact of our joint production.”

Co-Operative Plans To Reduce Carbon Footprint

HBS and World Rugby will embed sustainability principles in their operations and reduce avoidable carbon emissions by using innovative technologies to support the international federation’s climate targets.  

HBS CEO Dan Miodownik said: “We are very proud of our collaborative partnership with World Rugby over the past years and are delighted to carry on working together for the next series of events. The growth of women’s rugby continues apace and the next edition in England ties in with the launch of our new HBS branch in the UK, and we will start this new cycle with the usual objective to keep evolving and innovating to match World Rugby’s ambition.”

Rugby Partnership News 2024

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• Gallagher High Performance Academy 2024 Female Coaches Announced.
• World Rugby Extends Partnership With Two Circles.
• Rugby World Cup and Asahi Super Dry Extend Principal Partnership Until 2029.