Ireland legend Paul O'Connell has been impressed with the Irish bid to host the 2023 Rugby World Cup and is hopeful it will provide a huge boost to the country should we be granted the hosting rights.
Speaking to Shane Coleman on Newstalk Breakfast on Friday, the former Ireland captain said: "It would be great for the country. It would be great for rugby. It'd be great for all the towns and cities that are going to get games and the areas outside.
"I think whenever Ireland are at World Cups, the people that travel tend to go to the cities for the games and then they tend to travel around the rest of the country. So I think there will be a massive boost to the rest of the county. It will be incredibly positive.
"It will be the biggest world event we can possibly host and I think Ireland will do it really, really well.
"The enthusiasm for the event will be massive and I think it would be a really exciting time for the country if we got it. I think we have a great bid and we seem to be doing a good job at it so hopefully we can get it," he added.
The IRFU recently welcomed World Rugby's Technical Review Group ahead of the final submission of our bid.
If Ireland's bid is successful, they will join New Zealand, England, South Africa, Australia, France and (Japan in 2019) as the only countries to host the tournament solely.
Hosting the tournament is estimated to have boosted the New Zealand economy by £250 million in 2011, according to ESPN.
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