The road to Rugby World Cup 2019 in Japan has reached another exciting milestone with the launch of the global process to appoint the tournament’s Official Travel Agents.
 
Travel Agents around the world will be invited to register their interest from 13 March until 7 April, 2017.
 
The appointment process will be managed by Sports Travel and Hospitality Group (STH), the exclusive global rights holder for the accommodation bank, travel and hospitality programmes for Rugby World Cup 2019 in Japan.
 
Official Travel Agents will be appointed this year and will be able to promote and sell ticket-inclusive packages from early 2018.
 
With 400,000 international visitors anticipated for the first Rugby World Cup to be held in Asia, strong demand is expected for the tournament which will be held in 12 venues across Japan from 20 September to 2 November.
 
The appointed travel agents will be given the right to use the Rugby World Cup 2019 official marks, intellectual property and imagery.
 
Additionally, the official Rugby World Cup 2019 website at www.rugbyworldcup.com/supportertours will connect fans directly to Official Travel Agents websites to purchase tour packages, providing a compelling route to market.
 
The official travel programme for Rugby World Cup 2019 will look to emulate the record-breaking success of Rugby World Cup 2015 in England where more than 185,000 ticket-inclusive travel packages were sold across the 48 matches.
 
World Rugby Chairman Bill Beaumont said: “2017 is the year when the tournament comes alive for fans in Japan and around the world. By the end of the year, the pools, the match schedule and the ticketing programme will be launched, enabling fans to plan their Rugby World Cup 2019 experience.
 
“The Supporter Tours programme was a major success at England 2015 with more than 185,000 ticket-inclusive packages sold, representing six per cent of the total ticketing programme. With Japan 2019 set to provide a unique rugby and cultural experience for fans, and an estimated 400,000 international visitors anticipated, I am sure there will be great interest from potential OTAs and fans.”
 
STH CEO Simon Jefford added: “The Official Supporter Tour programme for Rugby World Cup 2019 will drive a significant number of ticket sales for the tournament. We are excited at the scale of the opportunity that the Rugby World Cup 2019 represents in terms of fans travelling to Japan and I look forward to seeing this demand reflected with significant interest from the Travel Agent market.”
 
Companies interested in registering for consideration in the appointment process should visit www.rugbyworldcup.com/supportertours.