Kick-off of the U20 World Rugby Championship 2023 in South Africa on June 24 Tickets will go on sale on May 31 via Ticketmaster at prices of R35 (children under 12) and R55 (general public) Media accreditation is now open The Cape Town’s Athlone Stadium replaces Boland Stadium as the venue for the U20 World Rugby Championship and will host the semi-finals and final of the tournament Exciting innovations will be tested during the tournament, including smart ball technology and the TMO bunker to facilitate match officiating Match officials have been appointed for the U20 Championship (June 24 — July 14) in South Africa and the U20 Trophy (July 15–30) in Kenya Anticipation is rising with the long-awaited return of the U20 World Rugby Championship 2023 in South Africa on June 24, followed by the U20 Trophy in Nairobi, Kenya, on July 15.
The opening day of the U20 Championship, returning for the first time since France lifted the coveted trophy in Argentina in 2019 and following a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic, coincides with a key date in South African rugby history, the 28th anniversary of South Africa’s first triumph at the Rugby World Cup in 1995.
Twenty-eight years after the iconic moment when Francois Pienaar received the Webb Ellis Cup from President Nelson Mandela and proudly hoisted it for the delight of a whole nation, the next generation of international players will be eager to create their own spectacle.
To mark the one-month countdown, World Rugby has confirmed the official match panels for the U20 Championship and U20 Trophy, as well as a change of venue for the U20 Championship in South Africa.
Athlone Stadium will replace Boland Stadium for the pool and knockout stages of the U20 Championship. The Athlone Stadium, a top-class facility in the region with a capacity of 35,000, will now host the semi-finals and final in what is expected to be a unique setting in Athlone, on the outskirts of Cape Town.
The updated match schedule can be found here.
The U20 Championship and U20 Trophy not only serve as a pathway to the test arena for future players but also for match officials. As a result, five officials from the 2019 U20 Championship have been appointed to the panel for the Rugby World Cup 2023, including Nika Amashukeli (Georgia) and James Doleman (New Zealand).
Thirteen officials from 11 nations have been selected for the U20 Championship, and eight additional officials have been named to the U20 Trophy panel, with both tournaments expected to make history.
Hollie Davidson (Scotland) will become the first woman to referee at the U20 Championship, followed by Kat Roche (USA) and Precious Pazani (Zimbabwe) at the U20 Trophy in Kenya.
The U20 Championship panel also includes Takehito Namekawa, a former scrum-half who played for Japan in the 2009 and 2010 tournaments and now returns as a match official.
The U20 Championship panel: Luc Ramos (France), Angus Mabey (New Zealand), Reuben Keane (Australia), Ben Breakspear (Wales), Hollie Davidson (Scotland), Eoghan Cross (Ireland), Anthony Woodthorpe (England), Takehito Namekawa (Japan), Morne Ferreira (South Africa), Damian Schneider (Argentina), Matteo Liperini (Italy, TMO), Ben Blain (Scotland, TMO), Marius van der Westhuizen (South Africa, TMO).
