Ireland to host 2017 World Cup

The Irish bid, which we wrote aboutpositivelysome months ago,will see major knockout games and final held at the impressive Kingspan Stadium (formerly Ravenhill) which has a capacity of over 18,000 with Queen’s University Belfast providing pitches for the lower seeding deciders and UCD  hosting all of the pool stages.

UCD has a venue that could host up to 3,000 fans alongside other training fields, and would suit the format of the Women's Rugby World Cup, which often sees the majority of teams based around one site before games move to a bigger venue.

Ireland's lead-up to deciding to bid for and win the rights to host the World Cup comes amid an almost perfect-storm of factors for nations seeking to bring the World Cup to their shores. Ten years ago it would have been unimaginable but a combination of the acceleration of improvement in the Irish women's game (two Six Nations title, a professional 7s squad and a World Cup Semi-Final) alongside World Rugby's understanding that its women's showpiece event simply must remain hosted by developed rugby nations given the success of France and England as well as the knowledge that the infrastructure needed for the Women's World Cup already exists in Ireland - means the IRFU could much more easily see the masive benefits.

The fact that Irish supporters travelled in huge numbers to both France last year and England in 2010 means that there will also be confidence that the crowds of Paris and London will easily be replicated and Kingspan is a fine location for the final stages of the tournament, although many will wonder if Ireland could have been even more ambitious and called in the Aviva Stadium for the knock-outs.

Either way, the news represents an excellent outcome for the game.

IRFU Chief Executive Philip Browne said: "We are delighted with today’s announcement that Irish Rugby will host the 2017 Women’s Rugby World Cup. Interest and participation in women's rugby continues to grow and building on this momentum we believe Ireland can deliver the best Women's Rugby World Cup to-date.

"We hope that the growing interest in women's rugby in Ireland, world leading facilities at UCD, Queen's University Sport, Kingspan Stadium and our internationally recognised reputation for being one of the world's most welcoming nations will make an exceptional event for the entire country.

"We would like to thank World Rugby for the opportunity to host this prestigious event and look forward to working closely with them to bring the tournament to these shores."

Women’s Rugby World Cup is being brought forward by one year to 2017 to maximise synergy with the Olympic Games and Rugby World Cup Sevens cycles for the world’s top female players. The event will return to a four-year cycle after 2017.