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Japan has continued its phenomenal run of success in
attracting major sporting events to the country with the award
of the Asian Games in 2026.
The city of Nagoya and Aichi prefecture in central Japan will
host the Olympic Council of Asia’s (OCA) 20th Asian Games.
The Asian Games will follow other top events including the
Rugby World Cup 2019 and the Tokyo Olympics 2020 which
are also being staged in Japan.
Alisports is to invest US$100 million over the next 10 years in
an effort to popularise rugby in China.
The company – the sporting division of e-commerce giant
Alibaba – revealed its plans at a launch in Shanghai.
The cash will be used to set up the first professional leagues for
men and women, and national sevens programmes. A massive
mass participation programme will be launched in 10,000
universities and schools in an effort to attract one million new
players over five years.
Development programmes aim to recruit and train 30,000
coaches and 15,000 match officials by 2020, while the firm will
The bid from Aichi-Nagoya was approved by the 35th OCA
General Assembly in Vietnam, securing the OCA’s showpiece
event for the next 10 years following Jakarta-Palembang,
Indonesia, in 2018 and Hangzhou, China, in 2022.
The Asian Games was first held in 1951 and this will be the
third edition to be staged in Japan, following Tokyo in 1958 and
Hiroshima in 1994.
launch a nationwide marketing programme and broadcast
rugby on its TV and digital channels.
The country is making a major effort to increase sporting
participation at all levels, and businesses have been rushing
to get involved.
And rugby is seen as a sport with huge potential in Asia,
especially after its inclusion in the Olympics.
According to World Rugby, participation in the sport in China
has increased by 40 per cent in the past year with 76,000
players.
JAPAN
CHINA
J APAN TO HOST 2026 AS I AN GAMES
AL I BABA ’ S SPORTS D I V I S ION TO PUMP US$100 MI LL ION INTO RUGBY
30 | Touchline
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