Barcelona’s Nou Camp is among the proposed venues in Spain’s bid to host the 2035 Rugby World Cup.
Spain has launched a bid to host the 2035 Rugby World Cup, proposing Barcelona’s Nou Camp as the venue for the tournament’s final.
The Spanish Rugby Federation says it wants to deliver the “best World Cup in history” and use the competition to expand the sport’s reach among Spanish-speaking communities worldwide.
The bid includes 14 proposed stadiums, among them Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu and Valencia’s Mestalla. The list would be reduced to nine or 10 venues if Spain secures the hosting rights.
The revamped Nou Camp could host more than 100,000 spectators for the final, potentially setting a new attendance record for a Rugby World Cup final.
The Spanish government and La Liga support the bid. Federation president Juan Carlos Martin Hansen says Spain has the infrastructure and organisational capacity to stage the tournament.
Spain also hopes to build on the international sporting momentum from the 2030 FIFA World Cup, which it will co-host with Morocco and Portugal.
Argentina and Japan are also competing to host the 2035 tournament. Argentina’s proposal involves Brazil, Chile and Uruguay, potentially making it the first Rugby World Cup hosted in South America.
Japan, which hosted the tournament in 2019, is also a contender following the event’s commercial and audience success.
World Rugby is expected to begin assessing the bids in December and announce its preferred candidate in late spring or summer 2027. A formal announcement is anticipated during the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia.
Spain last appeared at the men’s Rugby World Cup in 1999 and has qualified for the 2027 edition. Its federation also aims to triple participation in the sport by 2035 and establish Spain as a leading rugby nation.
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