Repucom released new data which shows the huge growth of the Rugby World Cup fan base across the sport's less dominant competing nations. The information compares the interest levels of fans prior to the 2011 and 2015 Rugby World Cups from a selection of countries with teams currently outside of World Rugby's Top 10 rankings. Of the 16 markets tested, the top five which show the greatest growth in the percentage of people who are interested in the RWC between the two tournaments are ranked 14th, Italy (11 percentage point growth), 21st, Spain (six percentage point growth), 72nd, Thailand (five percentage point growth), 74th, India (four percentage point growth) and 57th, Malaysia (four percentage point growth). While interest levels in rugby's better established markets remain expectedly and comparatively high, it is markets such as Japan, Canada, the U.S. and Mexico which may prove to be interesting reading among the sport's marketing and commercial strategists. Repucom Global Head of Market Research Mike Wragg said, "Growing the fan base of a sport remains central to its success. The Rugby World Cup has done a huge amount over the last decade or so to bring the sport to a truly global scale." Italy is perhaps one of the best known rugby nations to feature in this new research, having played annually in the Six Nations consecutively since '00. It is the market, however, which shows the biggest jump in the percentage of population who say they are interested in the RWC, growing from 7% prior to the '11 tournament to 18% today (Repucom).
