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Stade de France to stage 10 matches at Rugby World Cup

The organising committee for the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France has reached an agreement for Paris’ Stade de France to host 10 matches at the national team tournament.

Matches that will be held at the 80,000-seat stadium will include the opening fixture, two quarter-finals, both semi-finals and the final. The Stade de France also hosted the final of the 2007 tournament between South Africa and England.

The Stade de France serves as the home of the French national team and opened in 1998 for the FIFA World Cup. The stadium hosted the final of the tournament and also staged the final of UEFA Euro 2016. It is also pencilled in to host events at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

France’s Rugby World Cup is scheduled to take place from September 8 to October 21, 2023. Venues in Marseille, Lille, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Nantes, Lyon, Nice and Saint-Etienne will also host matches.

The France 2023 organising committee struck the agreement with the Stade de France yesterday (Monday). The deal has been reached ahead of the draw for the tournament on December 14.

“I am delighted with the wonderful collaboration with the France 2023 team, which allowed us to quickly sign the contract,” Alexandra Boutelier, general manager of Consortium Stade de France, said, according to French newspaper L’Équipe.

“After 2007, after the major football events, and before the Olympic and Paralympic Games of 2024, we are particularly proud to continue, thanks to rugby, to promote the national stadium.”

Tickets for the tournament will go on sale in March next year. A total of 800,000 fans are expected to attend matches at the Stade de France.

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