It's easily been one of the worst kept secrets in American rugby (and that's not a bad thing) but today U.S.A. Rugby and the Australia Rugby Union have made it official by announcing that they will be facing off in Chicago on September 5th. Chicago has been rumored as the location for the match since earlier in the year but the release of the NFL schedule cast some doubts on that. However, it appears that has all been worked out.
The match will be a part of both team's World Cup preparations with the U.S. playing Samoa on September 20th in Brighton and Australia playing Fiji on September 23rd in Cardiff. The U.S. will take on Harlequins in Philadelphia on the previous Sunday and before that have four matches in the Pacific Nations Cup in San Jose, Sacramento, Toronto, and Vancouver. The U.S. and Australia last played at the 2011 World Cup where Australia won 67-5. That was the match the U.S. choose to play mostly their reserves. The lone U.S. try was scored by JJ Gagiano.
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It's easy to see why both teams would want to play the match. Australia are cash strapped and there have been major worries about their financial future. After New Zealand brought in a reported million dollars from last year's match Australia have to be thinking a match will bring in big amounts of cash as well. For the U.S. the match is also a potential large revenue stream. It's also another Tier I nation visiting the States. From a playing perspective in order to be the best you have to play the best. The U.S. still have a long way to go in that department but there is no question that since they started playing Tier I nations regularly that they have improved as a team both on the pitch and fiscally.
Additionally, the match signals a definite step up in terms of publicity surrounding a World Cup send off. Four years ago the U.S. played Canada in Infinity Park. It was a great match and had a great atmosphere but it didn't grab the attention of the public. If this match is once again on NBC then there could be significant interest as the Eagles head off to England.
The match isn't without risks. Australia do not have the same draw as the All Blacks. Fans that may have been inclined to attend last November's match may not be as inclined to see a team that isn't the All Blacks. As we've also mentioned before, last November's match was a celebration of American rugby. We've never had anything like that before and people from around the country made the effort to attend. Now that the novelty has worn off a bit a huge crowd may not be a given. Additionally, it's expected that Australia will have a large guaranteed payday. Presumably U.S. has a sponsor lined up to help cover the cost.
Lastly, playing against a very tough opponent as your last World Cup warm-up match may be a detriment if the score isn't close. However, on the flip side a close result could give the U.S. confidence heading into the World Cup. In the end, like the All Blacks match, there is simply too many positives for this thing to turn into a negative for the Eagles both on the field and off it.