There are “currently no plans or discussions” relating to Ireland playing a Six Nations match in the United States, the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) says.

World Rugby’s chief executive Alan Gilpin said on Wednesday that it would help any nation that wants to switch a Six Nations match to the US, as it continues its drive to spread the game stateside.

He used the example of Ireland v Italy as a game that would resonate with expatriate fans in the United States and could help the sport further establish itself there.

But, in a statement issued on Friday, the IRFU dismissed the idea that it was considering moving any fixtures to the US.

“The United States is an important growth market for rugby and we welcome and embrace initiatives that help introduce the sport to new audiences and, crucially, generate new revenues for the game,” said an IRFU spokesperson.

“There are currently no plans or discussions, from an IRFU perspective, regarding Six Nations matches being played in the United States.

“We believe the Six Nations holds a special place for supporters across all participating unions, and the opportunity for fans in Ireland and Italy to support their teams at home remains a central part of the competition’s appeal.”

In an interview with the Daily Telegraph, external and The Times, external, Gilpin said: “This isn’t a live discussion of an Italy v Ireland game, but why we use that as an example is because you’ve got two fantastic fanbases in the US of Irish and Italian fans.

“If you could take a Six Nations game to the right place, to a Boston or to a New York, where there’s a lot of those fanbases, you can definitely drive the economics.

“Now, you’re going to have Irish fans and Italian fans in those respective home countries saying: ‘Hang on a minute, you know, we want to see our country play?’

“The counter-argument to that [is] it’s still Irish and Italian fans getting the chance to watch their team, so they’re just not the ones who live in Ireland and Italy on this occasion. But that’s a balancing piece we’ve got to work through.”

Ireland have previously enjoyed two well-attended games in the US against New Zealand.

They memorably beat the All Blacks for the first time when the teams met in front of a capacity 60,000-strong crowd at Chicago’s Soldier Field in 2016, with a 2025 rematch which they lost also proving a similar commercial success.