This is an event expected by rugby fans for four years: the Rugby World Cup resumes its rights from Friday, with a meeting between Russia and Japan, host country. The competition will be broadcast on TF1, TMC and MyTF1. François Pellissier, director general of the advertising and sports of the group TF1, came on Europe 1, Thursday morning, to detail the device set up until the final, Saturday, November 2nd.
Towards 9 million viewers?
It all starts on Friday, with a special edition at 11:10, before the inaugural match between Japanese and Russians. It will be necessary to wait until Saturday to go upmarket: the Bleus will then open their Japanese campaign against the Argentines, at 9:15, before New Zealand-South Africa, a meeting at the beginning of the finale. In total, 17 matches will be broadcast on TMC, against 31 on TF1.
What does the TF1 group expect in terms of audience for these games, broadcast in the morning in France? In 2011, at the World Cup New Zealand, with a similar jet lag, games of the Blues had still collected an average of 8.9 million viewers. "The French know how to mobilize for major events," says François Pellissier on our antenna.
Three teams to comment on the matches
Fortunately for the channel, three of the four matches of the XV of France will be played on weekends, a niche easier to reunite the French behind their screen. "As big teams play every seven days, we manage to put them on weekends because there is a stronger audience," says the head of sports TF1.
To cover the competition, TF1 bets on three teams: Christian Jeanpierre and Dimitri Yachvili (with Christian Califano at the edge of the field for the matches of the Blues); François Trillo and Benjamin Kayser; Nicolas Delage and Olivier Magne. The World Cup Mag , presented by Denis Brogniart, will be broadcast before and after the matches, with Clémentine Sarlat, Vincent Clerc, Yannick Nyanga and Patrice Collazo, RC Toulon coach.
The schedule of matches of the Blues
France - Argentina: Saturday at 9:15
France - United States: Wednesday at 9:45
France - Tonga: Sunday October 6th at 9:45 am
France - England: Saturday, October 12 at 10:15