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Caption: Richie McCaw (L), and John Smit (R), at “The Road to New Zealand” event hosted by MasterCard in Johannesburg

Auckland, 20 August 2010 –MasterCard Rugby Ambassador, Richie McCaw, and John Smit, Rugby World Cup 2007 winning Captain, (both pictured) joined forces to urge Rugby supporters to get their Match tickets and plan their trips to New Zealand for Rugby World Cup 2011, at “The Road to New Zealand” event hosted by MasterCard, a Worldwide Partner and official payment system of the Tournament, on the 18th August in Johannesburg.

Phase 2 of RWC 2011 ticket sales, which allows fans to apply for individual tickets to all Matches except the semi-finals and the Final, will open on 10^th,September and close on 8^th October 2010.

While the ticket application process is open to anyone, MasterCard has given its cardholders an exclusive additional benefit.

MasterCard cardholders who apply for RWC 2011 tickets with their MasterCard cards during Phase 2 will get double entries into the ballots for the option to purchase semi-finals and Final tickets (due to take place in early 2011). Only fans who have applied for Match tickets in Phase 1 or Phase 2 will be eligible to be entered into the ballots for the option to purchase tickets for these coveted matches.

Those who used their MasterCard cards to apply for Team and Venue Pool Packs during Phase 1 (which ended May 2010) and opted into the semi-finals and Final ballots have already received double entries to be offered the chance to purchase tickets to these sought-after matches

Fans can apply for tickets online by visiting www.rugbyworldcup.com/tickets

Rugby World Cup 2011, the world’s largest sporting event in 2011, will be hosted in New Zealand for the first time since the inaugural event in 1987, and will see teams representing 20 nations compete in 48 matches across 13 host cities between 9 September and 23 October 2011.

Rugby fans can visit www.mastercard.com/Rugby. to stay updated on the exciting Rugby World Cup 2011 privileges that are exclusive to MasterCard cardholders.

MasterCard Worldwide advances global commerce by providing a critical economic link among financial institutions, businesses, cardholders and merchants worldwide. As a franchisor, processor and advisor, MasterCard develops and markets payment solutions, processes approximately 22 billion transactions each year, and provides industry-leading analysis and consulting services to financial-institution customers and merchants. Powered by the MasterCard Worldwide Network and through its family of brands, including MasterCard^®, Maestro^® and Cirrus^®, MasterCard serves consumers and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. For more information go to www.mastercard.com. Follow us on Twitter: @mastercardnews.