World Rugby chief executive Alan Gilpin said this year's Rugby World Cup is "timely" as Wednesday marks 100 days to go until the start of the tournament.

The competition begins on 8 September as hosts France play three-time winners New Zealand.

Problems over recent months have included clubs in England continuing to experience financial woes and Welsh players threatening to strike over contract problems.

In December, former World Rugby vice-chairman Bernard Laporte stood down from his role as the French Rugby Federation's president following his conviction for corruption.

"I think it is certainly timely for the sport as a whole that we are going to have this incredible opportunity to celebrate all the best things around rugby," Gilpin told reporters last week.

"We know it has been challenging times for a number of professional leagues, certainly for a number of clubs."

"Rugby World Cup comes at a great time," he added.

More than 600,000 international travelers are expected to head to nine host cities across France for the eight-week showpiece with tickets for all games sold out far in advance.

A growing number of high-level global sporting events such as Premier League football games and the Tour de France have been impacted by protests from environmental groups.

"We are planning all the time for such a wide range of different scenarios, and protests of any nature are certainly part of that," Gilpin said before activists halted last weekend's English Premiership final in London.

"While I am sure, as there is in every major event and every Rugby World Cup, there will be incidents we need to deal with, I think we will be well prepared for that," he added.

The Webb Ellis trophy arrived in France on Tuesday as ex-South Africa prop Tendai Mtawarira, who won the competition in Japan 2019, handed over the silverware to organizers in France.