Qatar pulls out of hosting the 2028 rugby Nations Championship finals
Qatar and the organisers have cancelled a deal for Qatar to host the 2028 and 2032 finals, along with a Qatar Airways title sponsorship, owing to the Middle East war. Paris's Stade de France is the likely 2028 venue, The Guardian reported.
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.…
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