30 June 2009 - Asia will again be the venue for a fourth Bledisloe Cup Test this year with Japan to host a showdown between the All Blacks and the Wallabies on October 31.

The Japan Rugby Football Union confirmed today at a media conference it will stage the match at the National Stadium in Tokyo - centrepiece of the 1964 Olympic Games and with a capacity of more than 57,000.

The formal announcement follows several months of negotiation between the Japan Rugby Football Union, their commercial agents Dentsu, and the New Zealand and Australian Rugby Unions.

NZRU CEO Steve Tew, in Tokyo for the announcement, said the match was an opportunity to continue to expand rugby in new markets but - importantly - in the current economic environment, was a key revenue opportunity for all three rugby unions.

"Building on the success of the Hong Kong match last year, we have agreed with Australia and our match hosts Japan, to schedule an additional Bledisloe Cup fixture again this year with the dual aim of growing the rugby footprint internationally and securing additional revenue which we can channel into our game in New Zealand."

The NZRU and ARU were first approached by Japanese Rugby officials during the Bledisloe Cup match in Hong Kong last November, which was the first played outside of Australia or New Zealand.

All Blacks coach Graham Henry said the fixture would add to the rich Bledisloe Cup history and also posed an additional challenge for the All Blacks on their end of year tour.

"The All Blacks have not played in Japan since 1987 so this is a rare opportunity for rugby fans in Japan to see the team, and for the All Blacks and their supporters to go somewhere we have a rugby affinity with, but visit less often." The All Blacks played five matches on their 1987 tour of Japan including taking on Japan twice, with one match staged at the National Stadium where this year's fixture will take place.

The match in Japan will be the fourth of this year's Bledisloe Cup series. The first three will also be part of the Investec Tri Nations series.

The 2009 Bledisloe Cup series will be played as follows: July 18: All Blacks v Wallabies - Eden Park, Auckland August 22: Wallabies v All Blacks - ANZ Stadium, Sydney September 19: All Blacks v Wallabies - Westpac Stadium, Wellington October 31: Wallabies v All Blacks - National Stadium, Tokyo

The Bledisloe Cup Test will also kick off the All Blacks' 2009 end of year tour. The tour dates are as follows:

All Blacks 2009 End of Year Tour: October 31: v Wallabies - National Stadium, Tokyo November 7: v Wales - Millennium Stadium, Cardiff November 14: v Italy - Stadio San Siro, Milan November 21: v England - Twickenham, London November 28: v France - Stade Velodrome, Marseilles December 5: v Barbarians - Twickenham, London.