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The game of rugby is set for a significant boost on the American continents with confirmation that a new Six Nations tournament is on the cards.
The possibility of this new tournament drew closer this week after talks between the United States, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay....
"This is a historic moment for rugby in the Americas," said Agustín Pichot, former Argentinean captain and current Pan American Rugby Association President. "We have had great meetings and we believe that the American championship will be a complete success for the development of rugby in the region."...
Sebastian Pineyura, Uruguay Rugby President said: "We are very happy with the progress made in the meeting. The goal of this tournament is aligned with our plans as a Union and we are sure it will be a great development tool for rugby in the Americas."...
Agustín Danza, CEO, Brazil Rugby Union was also in attendance at the meeting, saying: "We are very optimistic about the future of rugby in America. The collaboration we achieved in this first meeting showed us that by having more of these meetings, we will be able to accelerate the growth of the region."...
"We had a great meeting in which all the invited countries collaborated enthusiastically to make progress and reach agreements," said Sebastian Bianchi, representing Chile, adding: "the dream of a tournament with the six nations is closer every day."
"It is an excellent development that the leading rugby countries of the Americas are discussing the future of international competition," said World Rugby representative Tom Jones....
USA Rugby CEO Nigel Melville joined in World Rugby's excitement, saying: "This is an exciting time for Rugby in the Americas and an American Rugby Championship will be an important step forward for international rugby in the region."
North America's other representative, Rugby Canada CEO Graham Brown, shared similar sentiments, saying: "Rugby Canada believes strongly in working with our partners across the Americas. A competition that provides high-quality, consistent fixtures annually will help further ensure the growth of the game in both North and South America."
Work will now continue in order to develop the Championship ahead of the 2016 launch.
(Full article at http://www.rugby365.com/article/6582...n-giant-arises)
I wonder how long before they see that a Pan-American Super Rugby set-up makes more sense than Argentina doing laps of the Southern hemisphere playing against the SANZAR teams...