A roofed stadium in the heart of Canberra looms as the city's crown jewel as Rugby Australia open the door for the ACT government to secure Wallabies Tests and World Cup games.
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Rugby Australia chief executive Rob Clarke is taking expressions of interest from state and territory governments to be part of the nation's 2027 World Cup bid and he wants Canberra to be involved.
Now the ball is in ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr's court as the government contemplates investing in any of the international rugby games on the horizon.
The 2027 World Cup looms as the biggest tournament on the radar with Australia emerging as the favourite to earn hosting rights.
It could spark another debate about the value of a new enclosed stadium in Canberra's city centre, which would likely help the capital secure more household names than an ageing Canberra Stadium would.
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"A fully covered stadium in Civic would be an outstanding opportunity to showcase the nation's capital come 2027," Clarke said.
"We've just put out a letter going to all the states and territories this week outlining the timeline for how decisions are going to be made by World Rugby.
"We're taking expressions of interest as to which states and territories are going to be involved. I would like to think ACT would be involved to host some games, but we'll wait and see as that process plays out.
"It's very clear that we've got some excellent rugby product coming our way, we've got France coming for three Tests next year, England for three Tests the year after, a World Cup in 2023 in France, and then the Lions coming in 2025.
"There is some excellent rugby content coming to Australia, and every state and territory has their opportunity to secure one of those games if we can come to an arrangement."
More pressing for Rugby Australia and their New Zealand counterparts is settling on a host for Super Rugby Trans-Tasman's Super Round, which sees 10 teams converge on one location across May 28-29 next year.
Canberra Stadium will be available that weekend given the Canberra Raiders will be facing the Sydney Roosters in an NRL clash in Perth.
But whether the ACT government will pour cash into the concept, mirroring the NRL's Magic Round which has been played in Brisbane, is up for debate.
"We already have expressions of interest from people who have seen that as a great opportunity to showcase the game in their town. I'm thinking that's going to be a really exciting opportunity," Clarke said.
"It'll be selected based on those that have the facilities and infrastructure to be able to cope with that type of tournament. It opens itself up to a range of stadia and a number of states, so we're looking forward to seeing how that pans out."