Qatar will not host the finals of rugby's new Nations Championship in 2028, The Guardian reported on Wednesday. The decision follows uncertainty caused by the war in the Middle East. It also ends a planned title sponsorship deal with Qatar Airways, the national airline.
After months of talks, the two sides agreed to drop an agreement for Qatar to stage the six-match final series in 2028 and 2032. The deal also included a Qatar Airways title sponsorship for four editions of the competition. According to The Guardian, staging rights and sponsorship together were worth around £80m to the tournament for each edition held in Qatar.
The Six Nations and the four leading Sanzaar unions run the competition. They are confident that replacement deals can make up the lost money, the paper reported. The sponsorship itself was reportedly worth £15m. Most of the deal's value lay in the hosting rights, so the initial write-off is not expected to be large.
France and Spain have already expressed informal interest in hosting in 2028. Organisers plan to invite bids early next year. At this stage, a 2028 finals event at the Stade de France is seen as the most likely outcome. The United States is pencilled in to host the 2030 finals, a year before it stages the 2031 Rugby World Cup.
The outline of the Qatar deal was agreed last year. The Guardian said complications began when US President Donald Trump ordered airstrikes on Iran in March and the conflict escalated. Qatar's government chose not to put the deal into effect before the first matches in July. The US and Israel are still threatening further strikes on Iran, despite peace talks hosted by Qatar last weekend.
The war has also hit other sport in the region. Uncertainty still surrounds a Formula One Grand Prix planned for the end of this month. This weekend's Qatar MotoGP is due to go ahead, although several riders are boycotting it over safety concerns.
The tournament resumes this weekend without a title sponsor, but organisers still expect a profit in its first year. TV deals are in place with more than 80 broadcasters, and 70% of finals tickets have been sold. Six Nations teams will play three home games over the next three weeks. This year's finals will be played at Twickenham's Allianz Stadium, with the grand final on Sunday, November 29.