Australia scraps 2015 World Cup bid

Australia has withdrawn its bid for the 2015 World Cup and may not bid for 2019 due to an "exorbitant" guarantee fee charged by the International Rugby Board, the country's rugby union chief said.

Australian Rugby Union (ARU) chief executive John O'Neill said it would be a struggle to find a bank willing to guarantee the £96 million ($140 million) hosting fee amid the global credit crunch and 10 years in advance of the 2019 World Cup.

"We won't bid for 2015. We're working on a bid for 2019, but I've got to say the numbers are horrendously difficult to justify with that level of tournament fee," O'Neill told Australian Associated Press.

Australia, along with England, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Scotland, South Africa and Wales, confirmed their intention to bid for the 2015 World Cup last year.

England has since signalled its bid could be in jeopardy because of the difficulty of making the up-front payment amid the global financial crisis although the British government came out in support of the bid in February.

Japanese officials have said the crisis would not affect their bid.

The IRB will make its decision on the host nation for the 2015 and 2019 tournaments on July 28.