Sanday eyes sell-out crowd for UK test

Fiji Rugby Union (FRU) chairman John Sanday is hoping to have a sell-out crowd when they host their Nations Cup matches in the United Kingdom in July.

The inaugural Nations Championship competition is set to kick-off in 95 days.

The Nations Championship will see 12 of the world’s best teams compete across July and November, in a format that pits Northern and Southern Hemisphere sides against each other.

Fiji hosts Wales at Cardiff Stadium in their opener on July 4 followed by England on July 12.

Sanday said they have sold 3303 tickets since last Thursday for the Wales match; Cardiff Stadium has a seating capacity of 32,500.

“That is 10 per cent capacity sold (for the Wales match) and the sales proceeds received is GBP88,627 (net) (FJ $265,169.77),” Sanday said.

“Sales are slow and we are working on ramping up marketing to push this game to the Welsh rugby family.

“On the tickets sales for the game against England at Hill Dickinson Stadium, home of Everton FC, we have sold 37,075 tickets representing around 71 per cent of full capacity of 52,500. Total funds so far received from ticket sales from this match stands at GBP1,131,311(net) (FJ $3, 365, 539.36).

“We hope to have the stadium sold out well before the game on July 11th and call on English fans and the Fijian diaspora for continued support by way of purchasing of tickets.”

Sanday said Fiji and Wales have a very special relationship; Wales was the first Northern Hemisphere union to invite Fiji for a tour in 1964, which helped cement the Fiji rugby brand in their region.

He added the success of that tour followed by several Test between the two nations and also hosting Welsh clubs in Fiji during their tours.

“There have been challenges as we navigate the regulatory environments to ensure we are compliant with both Fiji and UK laws.

“It has been a truly valuable learning curve. I can only give credit to my board of directors and the skills they bring to the table. We can only get better as an organisation.”

He is urging the Welsh fans to head to the game and cheer on their teams.

“Proceeds from tickets sales from this match is earmarked for investment into high performance sporting facilities and securing a block of land for our stadium,” Sanday said.

“At FRU are following global developments closely and will ramp up marketing of these two Test matches in the next week or so. As we are going global, we are quickly learning the risks of global business and there has been a lot of valuable learnings since we started on this journey.

“I continue to urge your prayers and support for all the efforts we are putting in on this.”

Fiji will take on Scotland in their Round 3 match.

Northern teams will travel South in July for three rounds of matches, before Southern teams head north in November to complete the round-robin phase.

Standings within each hemisphere will determine match-ups for the Finals Weekend in London, where teams will play their corresponding opponent, first versus first through to sixth versus sixth, to decide overall placings and the tournament champion.

Meanwhile, tickets of the first Nations Championship fixture between the All Blacks and France in Christchurch on July 4 sold out within four hours.