The 2007 Rugby World Cup is the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union world championship inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations are competing for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament hosted by France from 7 September to 20 October. France won the hosting rights in 2003, beating a bid from England. The competition comprises 48 matches over 44 days. Forty-two matches are being played in ten cities throughout France, as well as four in Cardiff, Wales and two in Edinburgh, Scotland.
The eight quarter-finalists from 2003 were granted automatic qualification, while 12 other nations gained entry through the regional qualifying competitions that began in 2004 - of them, Portugal is the only World Cup debutant. The top three nations from each pool at the end of the pool stage will qualify automatically for the 2011 World Cup.
The competition opened on the 7 September at the Stade de France in St-Denis, which will also be the venue of the final match on the 20 October.
No comments:
Post a Comment