Rugby Australia has unveiled the full season draw for Vodafone Super Rugby AU.
Source: NSW Rugby
Kicking off on July 3, the competition will run over 12 consecutive weekends and will culminate in a two-week finals series beginning on September 12.
The Final will be hosted by the team that finishes top of the ladder after the regular rounds and will be played on September 19. The hosts will play the winner of a two-versus-three Qualifying Final in the decider.
All 22 matches in the tournament will be broadcast exclusively live and ad-break free during play in High Definition on FOX SPORTS on Foxtel, Foxtel NOW and streamed on Kayo.
Matches will be played at venues across Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Canberra, and Perth and each blockbuster Aussie derby will be played in Friday or Saturday night primetime slots, offering fans consistent tune-in times across the entire season.
The NSW Waratahs will kick things off against their oldest rivals – the Queensland Reds – at Suncorp Stadium on Friday 3 July.
They’ll follow that with two games in Sydney against the returning Western Force and the Brumbies, with stadium locations to be confirmed in the coming weeks.
Rob Penney’s side will face the Rebels at AAMI Park, before their first bye of the competition. They’ll then play a secondary fixture against each side, before finishing the regular season with their second bye.
NSW Rugby CEO, Paul Doorn said that confirmation of a draw following yesterday’s broadcast announcement was the beginning of an exciting period for the entire business.
“Alongside our friends in New Zealand, this will be one of the first professional rugby competition to return to play,” Doorn said.
“It’s a significant achievement from all involved and I’m so pleased that rugby fans will be able to enjoy Super Rugby AU from early-July.
“We’ll be working through our stadium locations and will continue to adapt our operations based on government health advice – we’re hopeful of finding ways that our Members and fans can interact with the Waratahs before season’s end.”
For the first seven rounds, the Vodafone Super Rugby AU Saturday night (7.15pm AEST) fixture will feature as part of Super Rugby a double-header on FOX SPORTS with the Australian broadcaster also set to screen the full Super Rugby Aotearoa season.
Matches in the New Zealand competition will be played on Saturdays (5.05pm AEST) and Sundays (3.35pm AEST) beginning this weekend.
Rugby Australia interim CEO, Rob Clarke said: “Today is another exciting day for Rugby fans in Australia as we unveil the full competition draw for Vodafone Super Rugby AU.
“One of the main features of the draw is the consistent Friday and Saturday night primetime viewing slots on FOX SPORTS, which Rugby fans can set their clocks to for the next 12 weeks. There will be no need to set the alarms to get up and watch your team in the middle of night.
“We know our teams will be desperate to get their hands on the silverware and players will be out to put their best foot forward for Wallabies selection at the end of the season.”
NSW Waratahs Super Rugby AU fixtures:
Round 1: Friday 3 July v Queensland Reds, Suncorp Stadium
Round 2: Saturday 11 July v Western Force, Sydney*
Round 3: Saturday 18 July v Brumbies, Sydney*
Round 4: Friday 24 July v Rebels, AAMI Park
Round 5: BYE
Round 6: Saturday 8 August v Reds, Sydney*
Round 7: Friday 14 August v Western Force, HBF Park
Round 8: Saturday 22 August v Brumbies, GIO Stadium
Round 9: Saturday 29 August v Rebels, Sydney*
Round 10: BYE
*Stadium TBC for NSW Waratahs home games
