Spotlight on Townsville for Rugby League World Cup
Date published: 20 July 2016
Townsville is gearing up for the biggest festival of footy in the city’s history after being confirmed as a host venue for three matches during the Rugby League World Cup 2017.
Mayor Cr Jenny Hill joined Rugby League World Cup 2017 (RLWC2017) chief executive officer Michael Brown and NQ Cowboys star Johnathan Thurston to launch Townsville’s status as a World Cup venue at 1300SMILES Stadium today.
“Bringing the World Cup to rugby league heartland right here in the north is great for the region and the game and fantastic news for the city,” Cr Hill said.
“As well as generating enormous exposure for the city around Australia and overseas, the World Cup will potentially bring tens of thousands of fans to the north.
“Today’s announcement is the result of a lot of great work between the Townsville City Council, Tourism and Events Queensland and the Rugby League World Cup Organising Committee and a commitment to take matches to regional areas of the State.
“The council will be working closely with Townsville Enterprise and other key groups in the city to make sure that we capitalise on this opportunity and give people a World Cup experience to remember.
“As the home town for the NRL premiers, the NQ Cowboys, we’ve already shown the world how we can put on a world class show.”
Townsville will host matches between the entertaining Fiji side and the US, plus a double header featuring Fiji and US each up against European qualifying teams.
Next year’s RLWC2017 will be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand and hosting partner Papua New Guinea.
The quest for the cup will be seen by more fans than ever before with 14 teams playing 28 games over five weeks between October 27 and December 2.
More information about today’s announcement is available on the official RLWC2017 website www.rlwc2017.com.
Follow RLWC2017 on:
Twitter @RLWC2017
Facebook @rugbyleagueworldcup
Instagram @RLWC2017
