Panasonic Wild Knights, Brisbane Lord Mayor kick off Japan launch of Brisbane Global Tens
TOKYO: Japan Top League side Panasonic Wild Knights today joined Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk at the Japan launch of the Brisbane Global Tens, a new international rugby tournament set to feature leading Japanese players among a host of international stars.
Set for February 11-12, 2017 at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium, the sporting bonanza will bring together more than 300 of rugby’s biggest stars from all 10 leading Australian and New Zealand rugby teams and four elite invitational teams.
These will comprise the Panasonic Wild Knights, South Africa’s Blue Bulls, Samoa, and French side Toulon, current club of Japanese rugby superstar Ayumu Goromaru.
The two days of rugby heaven will see global rugby’s top clubs compete to claim a share of more than A$1.6 million (JPY 125 million) in prize money and participation fees, with the compelling on-field action supplemented by a program of innovative entertainment expected to entice sporting fans from across the planet.
Launching the event at the Australian Embassy, Tokyo, Brisbane’s Lord Mayor said the new tournament, supported by Brisbane Marketing and Tourism and Events Queensland, demonstrated Brisbane’s ability to host high-profile sporting events.
“Brisbane is Australia’s new world city and we are enormously excited to be bringing the cream of international rugby to the best football stadium in the world,” Cr Quirk said.
“Japanese rugby has been on the rise in recent times following the Cherry Blossoms’ success in the 2015 Rugby World Cup, the establishment of Japan’s Sunwolves rugby club and the emergence of stars such as Goromaru, who we were delighted to host recently in Brisbane as a leading member of the Queensland Reds rugby team.
“With Japan’s key role as host of the 2019 Rugby World Cup, there has never been a better time for Japanese rugby to highlight its growing international competitiveness by joining the Brisbane Global Tens next year in Australia.”
Combining the space and speed of Sevens with the trademark physicality, athleticism and tactical element of traditional 15-a-side rugby, the Tens format showcases the game at its dynamic best, a truly immersive event experience that no rugby fan should miss, the Lord Mayor added.
David Higgins, the chief executive of founding major events company Duco Events, said the Brisbane Global Tens would be a truly unique event and become an iconic fixture in the international sporting calendar.
“The quality of clubs, players and venue, the participation and prize money, broadcast reach and audience size is unprecedented,” he said.
“We expect tickets to be in huge demand so to avoid missing out, we urge fans to move quick and purchase their tickets from http://www.ticketek.com.au/BrisbaneTens.”
Cr Quirk and Mr Higgins were joined at the launch by Panasonic Wild Knights and former Wallabies coach Robbie Deans, together with Panasonic Wild Knights players including Japanese stars Yasutaka Sasakura and Akihito Yamada, and Australia’s Berrick Barnes.
The Lord Mayor was visiting Tokyo as part of an official trade mission to Japan, currently Australia’s second-largest trading partner, with his trip including a visit to Brisbane’s Japanese Sister City of Kobe.
The Brisbane Global Tens tournament is being delivered by Duco Events, supported by Tourism and Events Queensland and Brisbane Marketing.
About the Brisbane Global Tens
Launching in February 2017, the Brisbane Global Tens will see the star players of 10 leading Australian and New Zealand rugby teams and four elite invitational teams from across the world (in 2017 the event will feature France’s Toulon, South Africa’s Blue Bulls, Samoa, and the Panasonic Wild Knights), compete over two days in a 10 players per side, 10 minutes per half, knockout tournament.
For more information on the Brisbane Global Tens, please visit the website, http://www.brisbaneglobaltens.com/
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