The 200th birthday celebrations of rugby which culminate at the Rugby World Cup 2023 in France are ensuring fans are at the heart of the festivities with Rugby Fan Villages located throughout France to ensure a celebratory atmosphere throughout the 51-day tournament.
This is also an environmentally conscious event that offers new tech and carpooling for fans to get around the country and enjoy the rugby more easily. The intention is to have an inclusive RWC 2023, regardless of who lifts the Webb Ellis trophy on October 28th.
Rugby Fan Villages RWC 2023
World Rugby and the RWC 2023 organising committees said: “To make the supporter experience even more pleasurable and unforgettable, and to ensure that the great celebration that is Rugby World Cup 2023 extends beyond the stadiums, France 2023 and the 10 host cities and metropolises have created the Rugby Villages.”
There are 48 rugby matches at RWC 2023 between September 8 and October 28 2023 and the Rugby Villages are located at:
- Bordeaux (Capacity 10,000)
- Lille (Capacity 800)
- Lyon (Capacity 5,000)
- Marseille (Capacity 3,000)
- Nantes (Capacity 7,000)
- Nice (Capacity 10,000)
- Paris (Capacity 10,000 – 40,000)
- Saint-Denis (Capacity 5,000)
- Saint-Etienne (Capacity 20,000)
- Toulouse (Capacity 40,000)
There are a range of events planned in the Rugby World Cup 2023 Fan Villages, which will include:
- Live broadcast of matches (in most Rugby Villages)
- Food and drinks
- Rugby taster sessions (with the Fédération Française de Rugby’s regional leagues)
- Sporting and cultural events
- Educational, interactive and fun activities
- Children’s areas and face painting for fans
- Some Fan Villages will also have a musical programme, concerts, DJ sets, karaoke, live bands, folk groups from participating nations, dance shows, themed evenings, Wheelchair rugby demonstrations, Virtual reality VR) stands, photobooths, drop goal simulators, drone shows, Quizzes, prediction games, blind tests etc.
Image Credit: World Rugby/RWC 2023
5,500 security personnel will be mobilised every day, reaching 7,000 on some match days who will complement the 5,000 private security guards in the stadiums of the nine host cities said France Minister of Sports Amélie Oudéa-Castéra at the RWC 2023 Opening Conference on Monday 4th September 2023.
- 91 per cent of French people support the RWC 2023 and 74 per cent want to follow it.
- Over 600,000 foreign visitors are expected for the 51 days of RWC 2023.
- 1.8 million tickets sold by the start of September 2023 – 55 per cent of them to French fans.
GMF Awareness Campaign
To ensure that Rugby World Cup 2023 remains a safe celebration, GMF has invited fans to take part in its “Sens Pénalisés” campaign, both physically and digitally which enables fans to drink responsibly and “test their level of drunkenness” at the GMF stands on 8 September, 20 October, and 28 October at the Stade de France, and 6 October in Lyon.
Official Rugby World Cup 2023 Stores & Merchandise
The organisers have confirmed there are official RWC 2023 stores in every Rugby Village and Stadium concourse selling official RWC 2023 merchandise.
The largest one in France (and the biggest-ever Official Tournament Shop dedicated to the Rugby World Cup) is located in the iconic Place de la Concorde in Paris.
The flagship store covers an area of 1,000m2, and available are “items on sale including replica jerseys of every participating team, official Gilbert match balls, 20 Nations products, accessories and souvenirs ranging from berets and keyrings to miniature replicas of the Webb Ellis Cup and a new, classic lifestyle and rugbywear collection.”
Image Credit: World Rugby/RWC 2023
TOTAL Energies Carsharing Platform – RWC 2023 Transport
RWC France 2023 organisers are trying to ensure that the tournament is as responsible as possible, and have partnered with TotalEnergies (an Official Sponsor of Rugby World Cup France 2023) to offer a carsharing platform to get to the stadiums for fans from around the globe.
This partnership forms part of the ecomobility initiative of the tournament and the idea is for fans to meet like-minded rugby fans – more about the TOTAL Energies Carsharing Platform can be found here.
For a driver or a passenger, you can register on the platform and create your profile, and RWC 2023 advises:
- If you are a fan, you are driving to the stadium and you have space in your car > You suggest a journey (outward or/and return) on the platform.
- If you are a fan, you have no means of transport to get to the stadium and you prefer a simple, low-carbon and economical shared mobility solution > you log on to the platform and, in just a few clicks, you find the journey you are looking for.
Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman & CEO of TotalEnergies said: “We want to celebrate our ties and close relationship with our stakeholders and customers across the country I am delighted that TotalEnergies’ teams will be putting their energy into making this great sports event a festive and popular French success worldwide!”
Rail, Bus, Tram and Airports Around France for RWC 2023
Oudéa-Castéra said, “We have coordinated a national mobility plan. This plan includes an increase in staffing at airports, for which 600 agents have been recruited to streamline border controls, and also at stations, with a specific plan put in place by the SNCF [railway], notably at Gare du Nord and Gare de Lyon….. Regional rail capacity has been increased, as have bus and tram services before and after matches, and between the stadiums and the Rugby Villages, with particular attention to services for anyone with reduced mobility.”
Fans From Around The World Can Enjoy RWC 2023
Forbes reported that the RWC 2019 edition of the men’s tournament received the biggest rugby tournament viewership to date – as many as 857 million people tuned in and streamed from across the globe – this is 8x the number of 2022 Super Bowl viewers and expectations are for RWC to surpass these numbers.
The confirmation of some select broadcast partners in addition to the newly launched RugbyPass TV should ensure the greatest possible reach of a rugby tournament to date.
Interactive Engagement For Rugby Fans
- There are also more ways to be interactive and engaged with the RWC 2023 Fantasy Game, and for Japanese fans, the JRFU have also launched the Japan Rugby App (although this might be geo-blocked).
- Fans who were hoping to wait for a rugby game will have to be patient as Rugby 2024 which was hoped to be released by the time of the RWC 2023 tournament, confirmed that the game would only be released on January 30 2024 but it has officially been licensed with 130 countries and 15 rugby union leagues.
- Not officially partnered with World Rugby or RWC 2023, OVAL3 which claims to be the world’s first global fantasy rugby and online marketplace has officially launched ahead of the Rugby World Cup 2023.
- Meta (Facebook, WhatsApp, & Instagram) has said it would be rolling out a range of Rugby World Cup-themed features – they are the official social media and augmented reality/virtual reality (AR/VR) supplier of the tournament. Fans can use Rugby World Cup stickers and AR filters to Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, which include feature 20 fictional ‘Superfan’ characters, based on mascots and other imagery from each participating nation.
The RWC 2023 app is a handy tool to have as a fan as all match schedules, ticketing store locations, news, match results and much more are on the free app.
Opta & Capgemini RWC 2023
The RWC 2023 tournament announced that three new insights will be showcased for the first time to enhance professional and fan conversations around team analysis.
- Expected Points
- Momentum Tracker
- Pitch Position Insights
Virginie Regis, Capgemini’s Chief Marketing & Communications Officer said “Fans expect more data-enhanced experiences from sports, and Rugby World Cup 2023 is a fantastic, global opportunity to test these new broadcast graphics.”
Alan Gilpin, World Rugby CEO added, “World Rugby are excited to be working with our valued partners to innovate rugby and the match viewing experience, delivering brand new insights for fans across the globe for Rugby World Cup 2023.”
It might be interesting for fans to know there is global representation among the media at RWC 2023 too – with over 1,500 confirmed at the tournament in France.
From an Asian perspective, there are 147 media attending but 132 of these alone are from Japan so we feel very privileged that Rugby Asia 247 is one of very few from the Asian region to be successfully selected and attending RWC 2023 as accredited media!
Rugby World Cup 2023 France – For The Fans
- How French Rugby At All Levels Can Benefit From RWC 2023.
- Rugby World Cup 2023 Opening Conference – Key Takeaways.
- Rugby World Cup 2023 Set For Grand Opening Ceremony.
- Rugby Global Participation – State Of The Game In 2023.
- World Rugby Launches Rugby World Cup 2023 Fantasy Game
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