World Rugby CEO Brett Gosper pumps up Australia's 2027 Rugby World Cup bid

World Rugby CEO Brett Gosper. Photo / Getty Images.

World Rugby boss Brett Gosper has given Australia's 2027 World Cup bid a pump up while also hinting at changes to the selection process in the future.

Rugby Australia announced in December it would bid for the 2021 women's and 2027 men's Rugby World Cup, with Sydney's touted $2 billion stadium overhaul set to be complete well before the men's showpiece.

Gosper, the son of Australian Olympic silver medallist and former International Olympic Committee vice president Kevan, is in Sydney this week to work on broadcast negotiations for next year's World Cup in Japan.

He is also set to meet with new Rugby Australia boss Raelene Castle on Monday.

The CEO said the impending renovations of Allianz and ANZ Stadium would count for a lot when it came to deciding who hosts the 2027 event, while also pointing to changes to the process after the 2023 Cup was controversially awarded to France.

"It is part of the assessment and was part of this assessment with the recent World Cup," Gosper said of Sydney's plans to improve its sporting infrastructure.

"I would imagine in a process going forward if there is a technical assessment, the modernity, the user-friendliness of your stadia counts for a lot, yes."

France got the nod from the World Rugby Council to host the 2023 event despite South Africa being endorsed by the World Rugby board prior to the official announcement.

Gosper acknowledged there was a "perceived contradiction between a technical recommendation from the Rugby World Cup board, and the council".

"It was felt at the time of that decision, that if the Rugby World Cup's going to manage a process of technical analysis then they should stick their necks out and recommend," he told reporters at the Sydney 7s on Sunday.

"As it turned out, that contradiction played out. It was difficult. I'm sure that's one of the aspects that will be examined."

Gosper also touched on the media rights drama that led to Fairfax Media and News Corp Australia both refusing the terms and conditions of accreditation for the 2011 and 2015 tournaments because of video restrictions the media outlets deemed unreasonable.

Gosper said World Rugby was not "digging our heels in" but that it would be difficult to shift the goalposts.

"We're trying to defend broadcaster rights, who pay a lot of money, we're trying to defend our own media channels that we own ourselves, and we're trying to find the right place for news media as well," he said.

"At the moment, Australia are the only ones who think we haven't got that right."

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