Kansas City bids to host 2031 Rugby World Cup matches, building on FIFA World Cup success

KSHB 41 reporter Tod Palmer covers sports business and eastern Jackson County, including Independence. Share your story idea with Tod.

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Kansas City is bidding to host matches for the 2031 Rugby World Cup — and the local rugby community is eager to embrace the opportunity.

"That would be absolutely massive," said Casey Cummings, a lifelong rugby player and the head coach of the Kansas City Blues Rugby Club 15s team.

The Kansas City Sports Commission, with support from the city, is finalizing a bid ahead of the Aug. 31 deadline.

"From there, they'll start to select host cities," said Kathy Nelson, president and CEO of the Kansas City Sports Commission and Visit KC.

On the heels of hosting six matches in the FIFA World Cup 26, Nelson said the Rugby World Cup is another event that would rank among the biggest in the world.

"The Rugby World Cup is the fifth largest event in the world," Nelson said. "We just hosted the largest event in the world. Rugby World Cup ranks right up there, so, if you're not a fan, you should get to be a fan quickly."

Kansas City drew rave reviews as a men's soccer World Cup host city, which caught the attention of members of the Kansas City Blues Rugby Club.

They hope the city gets a chance to replicate that experience with rugby.

"It was a great experience," Vince Jacoby, vice captain of the Kansas City Blue 7s rugby team, said. "It's just good to have different countries in America. It really helps us build up culture everywhere."

Jacoby said he experienced the energy of the FIFA World Cup firsthand.

"Orange Wave, I actually got to be a part of a little bit of that," he said. "I tried to go to some of the events and, man, it's a whole different culture when they come to Kansas City."

Mark Barbour, captain of the Kansas City Blue 7s rugby team, agreed.

"Yeah, it's everywhere. It's — everybody's talking about it," Barbour said.

That includes Cummings.

"I was able to go down to (FIFA) Fan Fest and then down into the city a few times to experience the games and the fanfare and everything like that, and it was really cool," Cummings said.

It gave Kansas City a chance to show off.

"My wife and I and some friends went to the Fan Fest and the night that the Chainsmokers played, and it was just an incredible experience," Blues President Joe Fridkin said. "There were 10s of 1000s of people down there having a wonderful time, and seeing the showcase that Kansas City provided was just incredible."

The mere possibility of hosting the Rugby World Cup already is generating energy across the Kansas City rugby scene.

"If you would have asked me as a 14-year-old if I thought the USA would even host the Rugby World Cup — and then that it could be in Kansas City — I probably would have said pretty slim chances," Cummings said. "But the fact that that is a huge possibility now brings a lot of good energy and a lot of drive to everybody who's kind of involved in the rugby scene in Kansas City."

Barbour said the impact could be far reaching.

"That would do wonders for rugby culture here," Barbour said.

South African rugby legend Naas Botha, the newly appointed director of rugby for the Kansas City Blues and a 2015 inductee into the World Rugby Hall of Fame, said the FIFA World Cup in Kansas City served as proof of concept.

"Looking at what the Americans did throughout the whole of the World Cup soccer — I thought it was an amazing job by America, and I think they can now go and make the Rugby World Cup even a bigger success," Botha said.

That is especially true for Kansas City, according to Botha.

"People need to realize that Kansas (City) must host World Cup games," he said. "Why? Because they proved during the World Cup soccer they (are) one of the best cities hosting major international events."

Barbour said a Rugby World Cup bid could do for rugby what the FIFA World Cup did for soccer.

"After seeing what the soccer World Cup did, with everybody talking about it, if everybody was talking about rugby the same way, then I think we'd get a lot more interest," Barbour said.

Jacoby said the prospect of hosting makes the dream feel within reach.

"Dreams are always big, but you know, when they see like they're not impossible, it makes you like want it a little bit more," Jacoby said.

This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.

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