The Calgary Rugby Union is beefing up their crowd capacity for Rugby Week in Calgary, as the Canadian senior men’s national team is set to roll through with a test match against the Georgian national team this summer.
The added seating comes after the demand exceeded expectations when the Canadians hosted the Russian national team last June.
“At that time, we had a seating capacity for 4,800 people. Our best guess was that we would get 4,000 people to show up. What happened was we had nearly 5,800 show up,” Rugby Week in Calgary committee co-chair Wally Marcolin said.
“We will be retrofitting the stadium again, but this time we will be holding at least 6,000 people and we expect to sell out.”
The No. 22 Canadians take on the 12th-ranked Georgians June 10 at the Calgary Rugby Park.
The match in Calgary will be the first of two exhibitions prior to Rugby Canada taking on Rugby USA to determine qualifications for the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.
After the Canadians take on the Georgians, they will head to Edmonton to battle the 16th-ranked Romanian squad June 17.
This all leads up to a pair of matches with the No. 17 USA Eagles in July. The team that puts up the most points will qualify for the World Cup, while the other team will be sent into relegation in order to earn a World Cup birth.
Tickets go on sale Friday, March 24 and can be accessed through Rugby Canada.
With a report from Kevin Smith
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