RTÉ Sport has announced details of its Rugby World Cup coverage which will include all of Ireland's games broadcast live from New Zealand as part of an astounding 130 hours of coverage across television, radio and online.
At the launch, England World Cup winner Ben Kay, Ireland legend Shane Horgan and Leinster coach Joe Schmidt were announced as part of RTÉ’s team of rugby panellists for the 2011 World Cup.
Also joining the team this autumn for the first time will be former Leinster defence coach and Ireland international Kurt McQuilkin, who will be co-commentating for radio from his native New Zealand.
Ryle Nugent, RTÉ Group Head of Sport, said: "RTÉ is committed to bringing the best of international and national sporting events to the Irish public free-to-air.
"Fans can look forward to following the Irish team’s progression every step of the way on all of RTÉ’s platforms with the unique perspective and expert analysis that our panel bring, which is unrivalled by any other broadcaster.
"We look forward to sharing what is set to be a momentous sporting occasion with the Irish public."
RTÉ Television
RTÉ Television will broadcast all the top games with 13 key matches live and free-to-air, including all of Ireland’s pool matches, the final, the bronze final, both semi-finals, all four quarter-finals and the opening match.
For the first time ever coverage of the Rugby World Cup will be broadcast in HD in Ireland as RTÉ Television’s live coverage of 13 key games is also available on RTÉ Two HD on SAORVIEW.
In addition to the live games, RTÉ Television will broadcast free-to-air highlights coverage of every game in the tournament between 6.00pm and 9.00pm on RTÉ Two each match day.
RTÉ's unrivalled team of rugby presenters, analysts and commentators will be on hand throughout the tournament with Ben Kay, Shane Horgan and Joe Schmidt joining regulars George Hook, Brent Pope, Conor O’Shea, Victor Costello and Frankie Sheahan for their expert analysis of all the action.
Tom McGurk and Daire O’Brien will anchor proceedings, while Hugh Cahill, Ryle Nugent, Donal Lenihan, George Hamilton, Tony Ward, Ralph Keyes and Kurt McQuilkin will provide the commentary.
RTÉ.ie/Sport
RTÉ.ie’s dedicated Rugby World Cup 2011 section will provide live video and audio as well as comprehensive news, highlights, analysis, picture galleries and interactive text commentary.
Focusing primarily on Declan Kidney's Ireland team, RTÉ.ie will provide the very latest news from the tournament while during matches the popular text commentaries will now include live in-match stats and analysis alongside minute-by-minute updates of the action as it unfolds.
Users will also be able to offer their views and comments throughout the tournament.
All text content will be available online at RTÉ.ie as well as on mobile via RTÉ 's News Now app on iPhone/iPad and Android devices, as well as on m.rte.ie/sport.
RTÉ.ie's RWC 2011 section will also include the usual insights from top pundits including George Hook, Brent Pope and Conor O’Shea, along with a special series of articles by former Leinster defence coach and Ireland international Kurt McQuilkin.
There will also be a RWC jumbo, colour, wall chart free with the RTÉ Guide on 29 August, which will help fans track how the thrilling tournament unfolds.
RTÉ Radio
RTÉ Radio’s resident rugby commentator Michael Corcoran will be bringing you complete coverage of all of Ireland’s Rugby World Cup matches live from New Zealand.
We will also be punctuating RTÉ Radio’s usual schedule with exclusive news, interviews and updates throughout the RWC, brought to you by the country’s top commentators and sports broadcasters.
Michael Corcoran first toured with the Irish rugby team in 2000, when they travelled to Argentina, USA and Canada. He has completed three British and Irish Lions tours, to Australia in 2001, New Zealand in 2005 and South Africa in 2009.
RTÉ Sport announce O2 sponsorship of RTÉ’s Rugby World Cup Coverage
RTÉ Sport have also announced that O2 will sponsor RTÉ’s coverage of the Rugby World Cup across RTÉ Television, RTÉ Radio 1 and RTÉ.ie. RTÉ’s 2011 Rugby World Cup campaign will include all of Ireland’s games broadcast live from New Zealand as part of an astounding 130 hours of rugby coverage across television, radio and online.
RTÉ Television’s coverage will include the live broadcast of 13 key matches, including all of Ireland’s Pool matches, the Final, the Bronze Final, both semi-finals, all four quarter-finals and the opening match, all of which will also be simulcast and available for catch-up on RTÉ.ie. For the first time ever coverage of the Rugby World Cup will also be broadcast in HD in Ireland as RTÉ Television’s live coverage of 13 key games is also available on RTÉ Two HD on SAORVIEW. In addition, all of Ireland’s games will be broadcast exclusively live on RTÉ Radio.
Geraldine O’Leary, Commercial Director, RTÉ Television commented "Offering cut-through across all platforms under one brand is RTÉ’s unique offering to the market. Rugby World Cup remains on terrestrial free-to-air television and O2 has secured powerful association with Rugby World Cup across all of RTÉ’s market-leading platforms- RTÉ Television, RTÉ Radio and RTÉ.ie. This partnership is a great endorsement of RTÉ Sport’s output and its powerful audience reach and we’re delighted to welcome O2 on board".
Jonnie Cahill, Marketing Director of Telefónica Ireland, which operates the O2 brand in the Irish marketplace, said: "I am delighted to announce our sponsorship of RTÉ’s forthcoming Rugby World Cup coverage. With a variety of early morning kick off times, watching the games at home will be a key feature of this year’s tournament and as the Irish team sponsor this was an exciting opportunity for us to consider. We have created some fantastic ads with Brian O’Driscoll, Paul O’Connell and Johnny Sexton which we’re looking forward to sharing with rugby supporters throughout the campaign and we hope these will add even more enjoyment to RTÉ’s excellent coverage of the Rugby World Cup".
Rugby World Cup 2011, the seventh edition of rugby’s showcase event, kicks off in New Zealand on 9 September and will feature the top 20 teams in the world competing across 48 tournament matches. The Final will be played on 23 October 2011 at Auckland's iconic Eden Park Stadium. It is expected that the tournament will be broadcast to four billion fans worldwide.
