Martin Snedden the CEO of Rugby New Zealand (left) and Mike Miller the CEO of the International Rugby Board hold The Webb Ellis Cup. Photo / Richard Robinson
Here's a handy guide to getting a prime seat in the stands for a match - or more than one match - at the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
* Buy a "follow your team" pack for between $430 and $1400 depending on seats when they come on sale in
April.
This will get you to the All Blacks' pool games with Tonga, an Asian qualifier, France and Canada.
* Use the earlybird add-on option to get early access to a quarter-final weekender pack for $380-$960, getting you the two games in Christchurch where the All Blacks will be if they qualify.
* Otherwise wait until later next year (date to be decided) when the individual matches go on sale.
* Be careful: Large numbers of tickets will be gone in the early team and venue pack sales, and tickets for the All Blacks-France and opening match against Tonga will be scarce.
* These purchases will make you eligible for the draw for the semifinals and final, due to be done in late 2010 or early 2011.
* There will be about 25,000 tickets to each semifinal and the final available to be divvied up with all the other fans from around the world in the draw.
* If you are lucky in the draw, a semifinal ticket will cost you $290-$780.
* A ticket to the final will cost you $390-$1250.
* The total cost of a All Blacks team pack, a quarter-final weekender pack and tickets to a semifinal and the final: $1490 to $4390.
* Alternatively, some New Zealanders will be able to access the 35,000 tickets allocated to the International Rugby Board for the semifinals and final, which will be sold in either corporate hospitality packages which go on sale in January, or the travel packages which go on sale in February. These packages are being handled by the IRB, and details of how to get them are not yet available.
