Japan is gearing up to be the first Asian country to host a Rugby World Cup. The tournament, which has previously only been held in top-tier rugby countries, takes place in 2019 from September 20 to November 2.
Ahead of the event, Japan National Tourism Office (JNTO) held a meeting with organizers and representatives from the 12 host cities. The aim was to brainstorm ideas that could maximize the number of foreign visitors to the country.
The tournament is spread over the entire country so businesses nationwide will reap the benefits an event like this brings. The 12 host cities are Sapporo, Kamaishi, Kumagaya, Tokyo, Toyota, Higashi-Osaka, Kobe, Oita, Shizuoka, Yokohama, Fukuoka and Kumamoto.
The 44-day sporting event is expected to draw 400,000 rugby fans to Japan. Not much lower that the 420,000 that attended the 2015 Rugby World Cup in England. World Cup organizers have predicted national economic benefits of up to 437.2 billion yen.
The event is expected to draw 400,000 rugby fans to Japan and generate economic benefits of up to 437.2 billion yen
Promotional Plans Ahead of the Tournament
A survey conducted by JNTO online elicited responses from about 2,000 fans in the main rugby countries of Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, France and Italy. The survey revealed that 62 percent were interested in visiting Japan. Of that group, 88.8 percent said they’d never visited before and half said they would visit popular tourist attractions between matches.
JNTO is thinking of producing promotional videos featuring legendary rugby players. They would give information about the host cities, including special tourist sights in the surrounding area. The videos would be broadcast on major foreign channels in the hope of drawing the maximum crowd to the event.
The organization has also launched a website called Discover Japan with details about access, local food and drink, places of interest and model itineraries. So far, the site has been visited by 500,000 people interested in the tournament.
Fears of Poor Turnout Unfounded
In the first phase of release, huge numbers of fans have already tried to secure tickets, putting to rest fears that the event would be poorly attended. Over 900,000 applications were received with more than 2.5 million tickets requested.
Tournament organizers are targeting a total of 1.8 million ticket sales, so some fans will definitely be disappointed not to get some. The next round of tickets will be available to the public on September 19, a full year before the Rugby World Cup is due to start.
The Rugby World Cup is expected to significantly boost business, and interest in the sport, all over Japan next year. And, if it’s as successful as current interest suggests it will be, it could lead to the event being staged in the country again in the future.
The growing interest in rugby could see Japan rise in the ranks as a globally-recognized rugby football nation.
