PARIS’ Stade Jean Bouin, the home of the Stade Francais RUFC, will stage the Super League game between Catalans Dragons and Wigan Warriors on June 6th.
And last Wednesday the two clubs held a joint media conference in the French capital to promote the event.
Hosted by the Dragons head of commercial Christophe Levy, CEO Sebastien Munoz and captain Benjamin Garcia, they were joined by Kris Radlinski (Wigan CEO), Rhodri Jones (RL Commercial CEO), Dominique Baloup (France XIII) and, perhaps most significantly, given the location, Thomas Lombard, a former French rugby union international and current Stade Francais CEO.
This event saw Radlinski announce that he expects around 5,000 Wiganers to make the trip to the French capital as both sides hope to welcome around 15,000 to 20,000 treizistes to Paris. The attendance will be boosted by the Grand Final of the French competition, which will be played as a curtain raiser to the Super League clash.
Speaking at the event, Munoz said: “It’s a fantastic opportunity for the club to come here and play in Paris, but I also think it is a fantastic opportunity for Super League and French Rugby League. We are lucky to play here, it’s a nice stadium, it’s a nice town, it’s a big event for the Catalans Dragons and Super League. I think that there could be 10,000 Dragons fans here in June if it’s possible, and with 5,000 from Wigan, we will almost be full.”
Jones was asked whether a game in Paris was part of a larger expansion strategy by Super League.
“We’ll let the Dragons do their thing here, it’s their event but we’ll see how it goes,” he said.
“We do have the benefit of two French teams in Super League so we can play around with that Magic Weekend fixture which this year will be in France [Carcassonne is widely expected to be announced]. This could have some potential for next year. We’re never afraid to innovate and never afraid to give something a go.”
Radlinski is looking forward to the opportunity to take on the Dragons in what will be their tenth different venue since they came into Super League in 2006.
“The stadium is brilliant, the city is welcoming and it’s great to work with the Dragons again, they’re friends of ours,” he said.
“We’ve built strong relationships over the years and for them to invite us for this weekend, it’s a massive opportunity for us as a club, our players and Super League in its 30th year to be on a magnificent stage.”
Having covered the Catalans since their inception, L’Indépendant journalist, Bruno Onteniente said: “It’s a celebration of 20 years of Catalans Dragons in Super League. This choice is very important. They could play in Perpignan, they could play again in Barcelona but they prefer to celebrate this birthday in Paris, in the French capital where Super League was born 30 years ago.
The Dragons take on Wigan at the Stade Jean Bouin on Saturday June 6th at 19:30 (local time) with the Grand Final of the French competition being played at 16:30.