International governing body, World Rugby, has announced Mick Wright as the Chief of Operations for their new platform, EventsCo.
With World Rugby transitioning to a joint venture model across its global properties portfolio, Wright will work closely with World Rugby chief executive, Alan Gilpin, chief of events, Michel Poussau and the wider events operations team to optimise the new model, which will be spearheaded by content from five World Cups.
Commenting on his appointment, Wright, said: “I am delighted to be joining World Rugby at such an exciting time for the sport.”
“I know the team well through my Rugby World Cup and multi-sport event experience, and the organisation’s vision, coupled with a clear mandate for growth, including the remodelling of its major events and onboarding world-class talent, represents a golden opportunity not just to lead in this space, but to be transformational.
“I am passionate about rugby and its proven ability to bring people together.
“Through this role, I hope to play my part in ensuring that the events that we plan and deliver have a positive and sustainable impact on the sport, its reputation and ability to grow, not just in its heartlands, but into new nations and demographics,” he said.
Gilpin, added: “Mick is enormously respected within the global major sports event environment, and we are delighted to be welcoming him to World Rugby at a time when we are managing a period of exciting change within the organisation.”
“Mick’s wealth of global events experience will be important as we establish a dedicated EventsCo structure that will oversee and unlock the potential of our new Rugby World Cup joint venture host delivery model for future Rugby World Cups in line with our strategic mission to accelerate the global growth of the sport, making rugby more accessible and more relevant to more people more of the time,” he said.
The announcement comes after World Rugby extended the archival content partnership with IMG Replay.