RUGBY League World Cup 2013 celebrated the ‘one year to go’ mark today with a truly international press conference.
Players from all 14 competing nations were available to the press on the day that also marked the date that tickets for the tournament went on general sale.
Nine players from across the globe, representing Australia, Cook Islands, Fiji, France, Italy, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Tonga and the USA answered questions from the media about their preparations for RLWC2013 via a specially created Google+ Hangout.
Players from hosts England and Wales, as well as Ireland, Scotland and Samoa were present at the press conference in MediaCityUK, the home of RLWC2013.
RLWC2013 General Manager, Sally Bolton said: “We wanted a special event to mark this very significant milestone for the tournament. The one year to go date was too good an opportunity to miss and gave us a great way to launch our tickets going on general sale.
“Early ticket sales to the fans of the Rugby League clubs and those who pre-registered have been overwhelming. We’ve found that there is huge interest in the big games of the tournament, the opening double header at Cardiff and the semi-finals at Wembley in particular.
“Sales for the Rugby League World Cup Final at Old Trafford however have really exceeded our expectations, currently out-stripping the other venues by five to one. I’d urge anyone therefore to buy tickets for the final now to avoid missing out.
“We think that offering 55% of our tickets at £20 or less to see the best players in the world represents fantastic value. This is the pinnacle of Rugby League, a global sport which delivers extraordinary speed, power and athleticism to the spectator.
“To gather players from all of the nations who will ultimately be responsible for making RLWC2013 the best Rugby League World Cup ever was a great way for us to kick off ticket sales”.
The RLWC2013 game at Langtree Park will be Australia v Fiji on November 2, 2013.
Leader of St, Helens Council, Marie Rimmer, said: As we have seen from London 2012 the atmosphere of these global events are terrific. Like the Olympics I am sure this will be a truly unforgettable experience and put our borough in the international spotlight once again.”
Tickets starting at just £10 (£5 concessions) for group games and quarter-finals are available for purchase for all games and via various special packages at www.rlwc2013.com
