HSBC Asian Rugby Five Nations kicks-off this weekend with Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan and Arabian Gulf chasing the automatic qualifying slot for the IRB Rugby World Cup 2011.  

IEC in Sports are appointed by the Asian Rugby Football Union to handle the television arrangements and have expanded the broadcast footprint to reach 90 territories and 80 million potential viewers worldwide.  STAR Sports, Eurosport Asia, J-Sports and Sky Networks (NZ) are the confirmed veteran rugby broadcasters.  However, rugby will reach millions of new fans with Zee Sports India, Starhub Singapore and Al Jazeera, who will all live broadcast Asian 15-aside rugby for the first time.

“It is excellent news that the cream of Asian rugby can be seen right across Asia, Oceania and the Middle East” said Ross Mitchell, General Secretary of ARFU.  “IEC has added a new dimension with their strong global broadcaster relationships and on-air creativity” added Mitchell.

“With the IRB Rugby World Cup qualification and inclusion in the 2016 Olympics, rugby has the potential to rapidly expand its’ participation and broadcast base.   We fully support ARFU’s objectives to continue to enhance this tournament” said Jonas Persson, CEO of IEC in Sports.
 
Clips of the matches will be aired on a “Total Rugby” the IRB funded TV magazine show as well as www.a5n.com, the official website.