New record ticket sales

Organisers are now confident the World Cup will set a new ticket-sales record of more than two million.

They were hoping for 1.9 million sales compared to 1.6 million for the 1999 tournament in Europe, but the uptake has been so good for pool games that two million looks possible.

This will be achieved despite advance sales of only 300,000 compared to an estimated 450,000 for overseas unions.

It means more than 1.6 million tickets will have been sold in Australia, highlighting local interest and the fact that many overseas fans opted to travel under their own steam and have bought tickets on the day.