The Rugby World Cup is well and truly underway. Since Friday and the victory of the XV of France in the opening match against New Zealand (27-13), the weekend has been punctuated in Saint-Denis, Bordeaux, Marseille, Saint-Étienne, and Toulouse. Between test festivals, clinched victories but also first hiccups, the 2023 World Cup has already recorded more than 220,000 spectators over the first eight matches, played between Friday and Sunday. What to calmly consider the rest of the competition.
If you were expecting to spend another evening watching rugby this Monday, you will however have to wait until Thursday before seeing Antoine Dupont and his teammates again. As per the rules, matches every three days do not exist in rugby due to physical demands. Because of the impacts suffered, the recovery required between two matches is longer in rugby than in other disciplines.
For this 2023 edition, the organizer World Rugby has decided to extend the schedule to give players more recovery time and preserve their health.
No longer disadvantage “small nations” as in 2019
Therefore, all teams have a minimum of five rest days between each game. A way to avoid the errors of the last edition in Japan four years ago, when certain nations had to continue every four days. For example, Russia had played the opening match against the Japanese on September 20, before continuing against Samoa on the 24th.
It is for this reason that no match is scheduled for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. After playing on Friday, the Blues will play on Thursday against Uruguay (9 p.m.), then on the 21st against Namibia, and finally on October 6 against Italy for the last day of the group stage.
Also Read: Rugby World Cup 2023: all the rules for beginners
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