England Rugby 2015 appoints Chief Operating Officer

Ross Young, the new England Rugby 2015 Chief Operating Officer

ENGLAND RUGBY 2015 (ER 2015), the organisation formed by the Rugby Football Union (RFU) to deliver the Rugby World Cup (RWC) 2015 has today announced the appointment of Ross Young as Chief Operating Officer. Ross will join ER2015 on 1 January 2012 from the International Rugby Board (IRB), the owners of Rugby World Cup.

In nearly nine years at the IRB, working within the Rugby World Cup Department, first as Commercial Operations Manager and latterly as General Manager, Young played a major role in the delivery of two Rugby World Cups in Australia 2003 and France 2007 and is currently committed to the delivery of Rugby World Cup 2011 in New Zealand. During this time Rugby’s showcase tournament delivered a commercial programme which grew from £67m in 1999 to £120m in 2007 to generate record surpluses for the IRB to invest in the development of the Game.

Now one of the world’s top three global sporting events, Rugby World Cup attendance reached 2.25m in 2007 and Young has overseen relations with organising committees, ticketing, brand management, tournament services and commercial operations during that time.

The appointment of Ross Young is the second executive hire for ER 2015 following the appointment of Paul Vaughan as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in December 2010. Vaughan commented, "It will be great to have Ross on board for 2015 as he brings a wealth of Rugby World Cup operational experience from working on 2003, 2007 and now 2011. We have the challenge of delivering some big targets but the crucial part of the tournament will be to ensure that we deliver 48 matches across the whole tournament to the very highest standards. This will ensure that we meet both our financial and legacy aspirations and Ross will be key to helping us deliver the event to achieve our strategic goals."

Prior to RWCL, Ross spent four years at Harlequins where he was consecutively Stadium Manager, Operations Director and then General Manager.

Young added, “I am delighted to be joining ER 2015 at what is a hugely exciting time. The organisation has a very clear vision and direction and with Paul’s leadership Rugby World Cup 2015 planning is well underway. I am looking forward to extending my association with one of the world’s biggest sporting events and using my operational knowledge and experience to contribute to what promises to be an outstanding Rugby World Cup.”

Young also spent 14 years with the Metropolitan Police and is currently living in New Zealand with his wife and three children working on the delivery of RWC 2011 and will repatriate after the conclusion of what will undoubtedly be another successful tournament.