FEATURE

Hamilton Set For All Blacks, British Lions Action

By Hamilton City Council

Hamilton will host international rugby next year, with confirmation today the All Blacks will meet Argentina in next year's Rugby Championship at Waikato Stadium.

New Zealand Rugby today announced the All Blacks home fixtures for 2016, plus the itinerary for the inbound British and Irish Lions tour in 2017.

Waikato Stadium has been allocated two major matches, with the All Blacks to play Argentina on Saturday, 10 September 2016, and the British and Irish Lions to play the Chiefs on Tuesday, 20 June, 2017.

The Argentina match will see Los Pumas in Hamilton to meet the All Blacks for the second time: the sides clashed at Waikato Stadium as part of the Rugby Championship in 2013. The British and Irish Lions tour New Zealand once every 12 years, and, on their last tour, in 2005 they were defeated at Waikato Stadium by a fired-up New Zealand Maori team.

Sean Murray, Hamilton City Council's General Manager Events and Economic Development, says the match announcements are great news for the city.

"Waikato Stadium is one of the best rugby venues in the world, with great views from all around the stadium, and some high-class turf and facilities. People in Hamilton and the Waikato embrace the opportunity to watch international rugby at the stadium," Mr Murray says.

"We expect the region's sports fans to pack the venue for the Argentina game, and experience shows us there's a great flow-on effect for the hospitality sector with these big matches," Mr Murray says. "The last time the Lions played here it was a huge event for the city: the Maori team pulled off a fantastic victory, and the CBD's bars and restaurants were absolutely crammed after the game."

"The city was really buzzing.”

Hamilton has developed a strong reputation as a ‘can-do’ city for major sporting events, having been the venue in recent years for several Rugby World Cup 2011 matches, All Blacks tests versus South Africa, Ireland and Argentina, plus Super Rugby semi-finals and finals.

This year it was a host city for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 and FIFA U-20 World Cup 2015 matches, and later this month it will host international netball at Claudelands, with a match between New Zealand and South Africa.