Roger Lewis at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff © Getty Images

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Tournaments/Tours: Rugby World Cup

Teams: England | Wales

The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) is confident that the Millennium Stadium will be cleared to stage matches at the 2015 Rugby World Cup in England.

The Rugby Football Union (RFU) was officially awarded the tournament at a ceremony in Dublin on Tuesday, with the 2019 tournament being awarded to Japan.

The Millennium Stadium was one of the 12 venues included in the RFU's successful World Cup bid but the International Rugby Board has already confirmed that its preference is for every game to be staged within the designated host nation. The RFU are now required to submit a proposal to the IRB, stating a "compelling reason" for games to be staged in Cardiff.

That would appear to jeopardise Welsh involvement in the 2015 World Cup but WRU chief executive Roger Lewis is confident that the Millennium Stadium's inclusion will ultimately be ratified by the IRB council.

''We know a lot of hard work lies ahead, but we've jumped the first hurdle," he told the South Wales Evening Post.

''Now we are all determined to ensure that everyone in world rugby fully understands the importance of the role the Millennium Stadium can play in the success of the 2015 competition.

''The Millennium Stadium is one of the finest rugby venues in the world, thousands of rugby fans based in England are only a short commute from our city centre location and we have the infrastructure, the facilities, reputation and rugby-dedicated population to make a major contribution to the RWC2015 spectacle.

''The reasons for holding matches at the Millennium Stadium are compelling and we remain confident the RFU plan will progress in full.

''We have one of the best rugby stadiums in the world here in Cardiff, the retractable roof ensures games are played in near perfect conditions in front of a capacity of 74,500 fans and its city centre location in Cardiff means it is easily accessible from across Wales and southern Britain.''

RFU chairman Martyn Thomas is also of the opinion that the IRB can be persuaded into allowing matches to be played in Cardiff.

"It was always made clear to us when we had the bid recommendation that we would have to accept the fact that all games would be played within the host union territory unless we were able to make a compelling reason to the Rugby World Cup board. We are now going to make that compelling case with respect to the use of the Millennium Stadium," he told the Evening Standard.