Twenty teams will be participating in the tournament, which has been divided into four different groups of 5 teams each. The competition is scheduled to start today September 9, and the finals will be taking place on October 23 at Eden Park.

The opening ceremony of the competition took place in a very grand manner in Eden Park at Auckland, as it was well-attended by well-known celebrities from across the globe. It was said to be a colourful event, where the crowd enjoyed a lot, as the organisers had put up a splendid display for the crowd that was gathered in the stadium.

The first match of the competition is presently going on between the hosts, New Zealand and Tonga, where the score reads 29 – 3 in favour of New Zealand. The hosts, as usual, are always one of the favourites for the competition, along with other countries such as England, France, South Africa, and Fiji, etc.

The matches are going to be played in more than 10 venues across New Zealand. All the stadiums are kept in top conditions, so that the players can enjoy their time in the field. All major kind of renovations has also been done in some stadiums. One of the biggest stadiums in New Zealand, Eden Park at Auckland, hosted the opening ceremony, and will also host the finals of the competition. It has a seating capacity for around 60,000 people. It is assured that the finals would not be witnessing any empty seats in the stadium.

Irrespective of the many favourites in the competition, it is the team that plays consistently well over  a span of seven weeks or so, that will have a greater chance of walking away with Rugby World Cup 2011.