Cash benefits might sway 2011 Cup vote to SA

JOHANNESBURG - Francois Pienaar is confident the financial benefits of staging the 2011 World Cup in South Africa will be enough to win the IRB vote next month.

South Africa and New Zealand are both bidding to be the first country to host the World Cup finals twice alongside Japan, who have never hosted rugby's showpiece event.

"We are very happy that we have done an outstanding job in bidding for the 2011 World Cup," Pienaar, captain of the World Cup winning Springbok side of 1995 and chief executive of the 2011 bid, told a media conference.

"Our confidence is high because we have done the best we can. We delivered the best bid book to the IRB, we know that, and South Africa has the best facts and figures."

The International Rugby Board (IRB) will vote for the 2011 hosts in Dublin on November 17 and Pienaar said South Africa staging the event would mean more money for the other founding members of the sport's international governing body.

"The eight founding unions -- South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and the Five Nations teams -- never used to benefit from the World Cup because the profits went to the hosts," he said.

"Now they all stand to get millions and therefore I believe they will back the bid that means the most money for them." Mthobi Tyamzashe, the chairman of the South African bid committee, said he was confident they had covered the two most important qualifications for hosting the 2011 Rugby World Cup.

"The first is the financial success of the tournament and the second is to grow the game," Tyamzashe said. "We believe we have both bases covered.

"Japan is a new frontier where rugby has never been before, while New Zealand would be a sentimental choice as they believe it is their turn."

New Zealand won the trophy when they hosted the first World Cup in 1987, while South Africa did the same on home soil in 1995.

"The day of our final presentation to the IRB will be as big as the 1995 final," Pienaar said.

- REUTERS