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Fiji to start Nations Championship at 'home' to Wales in Cardiff / Photo: © AFP/File
Fiji to start Nations Championship at 'home' to Wales in Cardiff
Fiji will begin rugby union's inaugural Nations Championship with a 'home' game against Wales in Cardiff on July 4, officials announced Monday.
The match will take place at the 28,000-capacity Cardiff City Stadium rather than the city's Principality Stadium, the base of the Wales rugby side.
The biennial Nations Championship will feature leading teams from both the northern and southern hemispheres.
It will replace ad-hoc tours and one-off Tests, giving more meaning to internationals played in the July and November windows, outside of major tournaments.
The bulk of the July block of fixtures will be staged in the southern hemisphere.
But a statement issued Monday said playing their games against Wales, England and Scotland in July would provide "an unprecedented opportunity for Fiji Rugby", one of the sport's financially poorer nations, "to generate significant commercial returns".
Premier League football club Everton's Hill Dickinson ground in Liverpool will stage the England match but the Scotland game will take place at a traditional rugby venue in Murrayfield.
Fiji Rugby Union chief executive Koli Sewabu said playing games overseas would "enable us to invest more into grassroots rugby supporting the continued growth and success of the team".
Fiji beat Wales 24-19 when the teams last met at the Principality Stadium in a 2024 November international.
Wales coach Steve Tandy said a Nations Championship opener 'away' to Fiji in Cardiff would be "incredible", adding: "We know they like a fast, free-flowing game and I'm sure it'll be an exciting match for fans."
Q.Szulc--GL
