DOMINIC McKay, chairman of European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR), has revealed that interest in hosting European club rugby’s finals weekend was higher than ever after announcing Cardiff and Bilbao as the venues for 2025 and 2026.
The desire to host the Champions Cup/Challenge Cup showpiece matches in a traditional rugby stronghold one year and in an emerging market the next was reflected by the breadth of applications EPCR received.
“We had 23 expressions of interest with 12 countries bidding and that is testament to the excitement around finals weekend, so I am incredibly pleased about that,” said McKay. “Some countries were from a traditional rugby environment and others from further afield and that is an indication of the size and the scale of finals weekend.”
While Cardiff and Bilbao have got the nod this time around, with this year’s final in Tottenham, north London, McKay envisages a time when the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup finals are hosted in South Africa.
“I think there is a very real possibility to have a final in South Africa before too long,” he said. “I have spent a bit of time down there over the years and the delivery of major sporting events in South Africa is pretty outstanding, so we are pretty active at the moment with our colleagues at the South Africa Rugby Union and with the various cities about what may be possible in the future. While we have made announcements for 2025 and 2026, 2027 won’t be too far off so we have got some hard decisions to make about 2027 and beyond.”
Tbilisi wasn’t one of the cities put forward as a potential host in 2025 and 2026 but McKay says the inclusion of Georgian franchise team, Black Lion, has been a huge positive, not only for their perfor mance in beating Scarlets but also the crowds they have attracted.
“I was in Tbilisi last weekend with 20,000 Georgians watching a Challenge Cup game (v Cler mont). It just shows the thirst and interest for rugby outside of traditional markets but also the opportunity that exists for the whole sport to embrace these new markets if it is done in a way that is strategic.
“They (Georgia) weren’t one of the 23 this time around although having spent some time with the President, I know they are very motivated to demonstrate their keenness to be hosting major events and major finals in the future.
“We are very pleased with the Black Lion’s first season, they have delivered in a number of ways: firstly, from a sporting point of view they have added real value to the Challenge Cup, secondly, their events have been excellent in terms of execution and delivery, and thirdly, their alignment with their Union is intrinsic.”
Black Lion and the Cheetahs
