Manchester may well be renowned around the world as a bastion of English football, but on Saturday October 10, 2015, the city will welcome Rugby through its doors for Rugby World Cup 2015.
Manchester is no stranger to Rugby and England have played two tests at Old Trafford in recent years; against New Zealand in 1997 and Argentina in 2009. Across the city, the Manchester City Stadium was at the heart of the Commonwealth Games in 2002, including a memorable Sevens final between New Zealand and Fiji.
Fast forward to 2015, and the Manchester City Stadium will be the setting for England’s final match in Pool A against the Play-off winner. The tournament hosts’ opponents will be known on October 11, 2014, after a two-leg repechage play-off between Russia and Uruguay. England have met Uruguay once before on the game’s greatest stage, at RWC 2003 in Australia, while a clash with Russia would represent a first ever meeting between the two sides at a Rugby World Cup.
Despite still not knowing who England will be facing on the day, Manchester is clearly embracing the tournament and demand for tickets to the match is already high - the fixture went to ballot just one week into the General Sale application window.
We head to Manchester to find out how the city is preparing to welcome the world next year. In this episode:
