AFP

File picture of Biarritz players celebrating the end of the European season.

North London rugby club Saracens will play French club Biarritz in a Heineken Cup match at Cape Town Stadium in January next year.

Grant Pascoe, mayoral committee member for tourism, events and marketing, said on Thursday the match, to be played on January 14, would be the first Heineken Cup clash played outside of Europe.

“This is an historic day for us and a great day for the stadium,” Pascoe said.

“The match will take place in the heart of our summer. This historic match is the first Heineken Cup match outside of Europe.”

The game, to be broadcast across Europe on 11 television networks, would be an excellent marketing opportunity for Cape Town, Pascoe said.

“This opportunity to have Cape Town broadcast live across the world gives us an opportunity to market our destination so that more visitors from Europe can come visit us,” he said.

“It will give people from Europe an opportunity to see and hear Cape Town from the players playing here.”

The city has been heavily criticised for agreeing to build the multi billion rand stadium for the 2010 Soccer World Cup.

A report in Die Burger newspaper on Thursday said renewed talks were taking place about Western Province playing their rugby matches at the Cape Town Stadium.

Theuns Roodtman, the Western Province Rugby Union's chief executive, told the newspaper that they “are in talks with the city” about a possible move from Newlands to the new stadium in Greenpoint.

Pascoe said the council welcomed the move from Newlands to the Cape Town Stadium.

“These are tough and honest discussions. It's not an easy decision for the WPRU. There are various role players. Newlands is 100 years old and there's a lot of sentiment.”

Newlands has a capacity of 45,000, compared to the 55,000 of the Cape Town Stadium. – Sapa