England Rugby 2015, the Organising Committee for Rugby World Cup 2015, has announced the approved list of 41 Team Bases that will host the 20 participating teams during the Tournament, taking place in England and in Cardiff between September 18 and October 31 2015.
St. George’s Park managing director, Julie Harrington responded to the news that St George's Park would be among those bases by saying: “This is really exciting news for St. George’s Park and we are delighted that we will be part of the Rugby World Cup 2015 next year, which is one of the biggest sporting events in the world.
“Since opening, not only have we held training camps at St. George’s Park for domestic and international football teams, but other leading sports have been able to benefit from our facilities including GB Basketball, England Hockey and the senior England rugby teams.
“Both teams staying here will compete at Wembley Stadium and I look forward to welcoming both Ireland and Argentina to St. George’s Park to ensure they have everything they need to prepare for the tournament in the best possible environment.”
The search for Team Bases was launched via an open tender process in May 2013 and over 90 bids from across England and Wales were received.
St. George’s Park worked closely with England Rugby 2015 over the past 12 months to facilitate detailed site visits and liaison with the teams prior to confirmation of its status as an official Team Base for Rugby World Cup 2015.
England Rugby 2015 CEO, Debbie Jevans said, “As the organising committee for Rugby World Cup 2015 we are committed to ensuring that all participating teams have the optimum training environments available to them throughout the Tournament and in this regard we are delighted to announce our 41 official Team Bases for the event.
"Rugby, rightly, is at the heart of all our planning and we have worked closely with the teams to ensure that they have access to facilities and a Team Base that meet their individual needs.
"I would like to thank all those who have been part of the Team Base selection process and we are lucky to have some fantastic facilities right across the country.
"With a wide range of excellent facilities and locations secured the teams can be assured of having all their training needs met whilst allowing us to spread the reach of the tournament even further throughout England and in Wales."
Michael Kearney, Ireland team manager said, “The Ireland Team Management are delighted that during the 2015 Rugby World Cup the Ireland team will be based at St George’s Park for a portion of our time at the tournament.
Team bases play a vital role in team preparation and it is important that the facilities are of a world class standard while also providing a positive atmosphere for the players and management in between training and team activities.”
The full list of Rugby World Cup 2015 Team Bases is available here
