FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, October 23rd, 2019

2019 RUGBY WORLD CUP ENTERS SEMI-FINALS THIS WEEKEND LIVE ON NBCSN & NBC SPORTS GOLD

England v. New Zealand LIVE Coverage at 3:30 A.M. ET on Saturday; Wales v. South Africa LIVE Coverage at 4:30 A.M. ET on Sunday

USA Rugby Captain Blaine Scully to Join In-Studio Commentating Team for Semi-Finals and Final

NBC Sports Gold’s Presentation of Semi-Finals to Include Exclusive Alternate Viewing Experience with Tactical Cam Showing Entire Pitch

Individual World Cup Knock-Out Round Matches Available for Purchase Through “Rugby World Cup Single Match Pass”

New Episode of The Scrumdown Podcast Previews Semi-Final Action with Alex Corbisiero, Brian Hightower and Dan Lyle

STAMFORD, Conn. – Oct. 23, 2019 – The 2019 Rugby World Cup enters the Semi-Finals this weekend as the world’s top-four ranked teams meet at International Stadium Yokohama live on NBCSN and NBC Sports Gold for the opportunity to play in the Rugby World Cup Final.

In addition to NBCSN’s live coverage, both matches will be available live, commercial-free and on-demand through NBC Sports Gold’s Rugby World Cup Pass.” Coverage includes 30-minute pre-match shows, and both matches will also be re-aired later in the day on NBC.

World No. 1 New Zealand advanced to the Semi-Finals after defeating Ireland, 46-14, last weekend to set up a meeting with No. 2-ranked England, who beat Australia, 40-16, in the Quarter-Finals.

In the other Semi-Final matchup, Wales will face South Africa after coming from behind to defeat France in a thrilling 20-19 victory last week. South Africa, who is ranked No. 4 in the world behind Wales, advanced to the Semi-Finals by beating host-nation Japan, 26-3.

The four Semi-Finalists have combined to win six total World Cup championships: New Zealand (three), South Africa (two), and England (one). New Zealand is seeking its third consecutive World Cup championship, while Wales looks for its first-ever title.

NBC Sports Gold’s Rugby World Cup Pass” will also offer an exclusive alternative viewing experience through its Tactical Cam. The Tactical Cam angle will show the entire pitch and every player, enabling viewers to see how the offensive and defensive schemes develop in real-time.

Following is this weekend’s Semi-Finals schedule on NBCSN and NBC Sports Gold:

Date Match Pre-Match Show Match Time NBC Re-Air
Saturday, Oct. 26 England v. New Zealand 3:30 a.m. ET 4 a.m. ET 2:30 p.m. ET
Sunday, Oct. 27 Wales v. South Africa 4:30 a.m. ET 5 a.m. ET 2:30 p.m. ET

 

NBC Sports’ Leigh Diffey will host Rugby World Cup programming across NBC Sports properties throughout the knock-out rounds along with Sky Sports’ Rupert Cox, who will also handle the play-by-play call for both Semi-Final matches and the Final. NBC Sports’ rugby analysts Alex Corbisiero, who played internationally for England, and Brian Hightower, a former USA Rugby World Cup participant and USA Sevens captain, will serve as game analysts alongside Cox.

Sky Sports’ Gail Davis and James Cole will provide live match reports on-site from International Stadium Yokohama, with Davis reporting on the England-New Zealand match and Cole handling Wales-South Africa responsibilities.

Dan Lyle, a former USA Rugby captain and Premiership Rugby player, will join Diffey, Cox, Corbisiero, and Hightower in studio coverage, including pre-match shows. USA Rugby captain Blaine Scully will join Diffey and Lyle in the studios for the Semi-Finals and Final.

The 2019 Rugby World Cup began on Sept. 20 and culminates with the Rugby World Cup Final on Saturday, Nov. 2, from International Stadium Yokohama. The World Cup Final will be available live on NBC Sports Gold, and re-aired on NBC. NBCSN will also present live coverage of the 2019 Final.

A new episode of The Scrumdown podcast is available now, as Hightower and Lyle join Corbisiero to review last weekend’s Quarter-Final matches and preview the Semi-Finals.

NBC Sports Gold provides rugby fans with unprecedented access to the 2019 Rugby World Cup with multiple direct-to-consumer live streaming passes, which include commercial-free coverage, live and on-demand, on desktop, mobile, tablet and connected TV devices.

Following are the NBC Sports Gold Rugby World Cup 2019 options available for purchase for the knockout rounds:

    • Rugby World Cup Pass
      • Available for $99.99 for all remaining matches
      • Includes remaining 4 matches live, commercial-free and on-demand
      • Features exclusive original programming, pre- and post-day shows, extended match highlights and more
        • Includes digital access to “Wake Up with the World Cup,” which recaps the day’s action with NBC Sports’ rugby commentator team
      • “Rugby World Cup Single Match Pass”
        • Available for $34.99 per match
      • “All-Access Premium Rugby Pass”
        • Available for $144.99
        • Includes all offerings from “Rugby Pass” and “Rugby World Cup Pass”
        • “Rugby Pass” consists of all matches from the Premiership Rugby League, Six Nations Championship, Heineken Champions Cup, knock-out phase matches of the European Rugby Cup Challenge and men’s & women’s HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series

 

ABOUT NBC SPORTS GOLD

NBC Sports Gold is NBC Sports’ direct-to-consumer live streaming product that provides sports fans with access to exclusive premium sports events and content, live and on-demand, at an affordable price. Launched in 2016 with a single cycling product, NBC Sports Gold currently offers 17 individual sports “passes” – twelve domestic (PGA TOUR LIVE, Premier League, Premier League Match Day, INDYCAR, Cycling, Track & Field, Premier Lacrosse League, Speed Skating, Rugby, Rugby World Cup, Supercross, and Snow, consisting of seven Olympic winter sports); two regional (Blazers and Philly); one combination (Supercross and Pro Motocross), two domestic and international (Figure Skating and Pro Motocross); and one international-only (Notre Dame Football). Find NBC Sports Gold in the NBC Sports app available on Apple iOS & tvOS, Android, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Chromecast and NBCSportsGold.com, and also on Xfinity X1 and Xfinity Flex.

-2019 RUGBY WORLD CUP-