Menu
Facilities

England's 2015 Rugby World Cup Lists Potential Venues, Many Wishing They Made The Cut

England Rugby 2015, the tournament organizer for Rugby World Cup 2015, announced the list of 17 potential match venues for consideration to host the 48 Rugby World Cup 2015 matches. The venues selected comprise some of sport’s most iconic stadia with the best facilities from 15 different cities across England and Wales.The selection procedure for the list of venues took into account a geographical spread across the country, sporting and facilities criteria, levels of support from candidate host cities and capacity requirements for the successful delivery of a Rugby World Cup that will see approximately 2.9 million tickets being made available to fans, and upward of 400,000 int'l fans visiting England from more than 100 countries. ER 2015 will continue to hold discussions with the venues in collaboration with their respective city councils, regional authorities and other stakeholders, including the Premier League and Football League. Rugby World Cup 2015 will involve 48 matches to take place over a six week period from Sept. 18 - Oct. 31, 2015 (ER 2015).

  • Villa Park, Birmingham
  • Brighton Community Stadium, Brighton
  • Ashton Gate, Bristol
  • Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
  • Coventry Stadium, Coventry
  • Pride Park, Derby
  • Kingsholm, Gloucester
  • Elland Road, Leeds
  • Leiceseter City Stadium, Leicester
  • Olympic Stadium, London
  • Twickenham Stadium, London
  • Wembley Stadium, London
  • Old Trafford, Manchester
  • Stadium MK, Milton Keynes
  • St. James' Park, Newcastle
  • St. Mary's Stadium, Southampton
  • Stadium of Light, Sunderland
FEELING LEFT OUT: REUTERS' Keith Weir wrote "purists were disappointed" that Gloucester's Kingsholm in western England was the only English club rugby ground selected. The plans to use football stadiums "could complicate scheduling and advance ticket sales" because fixture for league football matches are finalized annually in June. ER 2015 COO Ross Young defended the choice of venues, saying that they offered a "good spread geographically and sufficient capacity." Young said, "We're talking about a world event, and we're talking about giving as many people as possible access to games" (REUTERS, 10/8). In London, Joe Ridge wrote Leicester Tigers "have reacted furiously" to their Welford Road stadium being left off the list. Tigers Chair Peter Tom "expressed his shock and disappointment at the decision" on the club's official website. Tom: "We are hugely disappointed to learn that Welford Road will not play a part in England's hosting of the Rugby World Cup in 2015." In contrast to Leicester, Northampton has "given their full backing" to the selection of Milton Keynes as a potential host city. The Saints have used Stadium MK "for some of their big Heineken Cup matches." Northampton CEO Allan Robson said, "The Rugby World Cup is a prestigious global sporting event, and it is right that England Rugby 2015 demand the highest standard of its stadiums. Stadium MK certainly fits into that category, as we know from our own experiences playing there in the Heineken Cup and setting the venue's attendance record." The venue list will be reduced to 12 next spring, thus resulting in a "realistic chance that no Premiership grounds will host World Cup games" (DAILY MAIL, 10/8). Young said, "The pitch at Welford Road was not big enough to meet World Cup specifications once television camera positions were factored in" (REUTERS, 10/8). The PA noted Leicester is still represented by the King Power Stadium, which has a capacity of more than 32,000. The tournament organizers believe it has "more suitable off-field facilities than Welford Road" (PA, 10/8).

SBJ Morning Buzzcast: March 25, 2024

NFL meeting preview; MLB's opening week ad effort and remembering Peter Angelos.

Big Get Jay Wright, March Madness is upon us and ESPN locks up CFP

On this week’s pod, our Big Get is CBS Sports college basketball analyst Jay Wright. The NCAA Championship-winning coach shares his insight with SBJ’s Austin Karp on key hoops issues and why being well dressed is an important part of his success. Also on the show, Poynter Institute senior writer Tom Jones shares who he has up and who is down in sports media. Later, SBJ’s Ben Portnoy talks the latest on ESPN’s CFP extension and who CBS, TNT Sports and ESPN need to make deep runs in the men’s and women's NCAA basketball tournaments.

SBJ I Factor: Nana-Yaw Asamoah

SBJ I Factor features an interview with AMB Sports and Entertainment Chief Commercial Office Nana-Yaw Asamoah. Asamoah, who moved over to AMBSE last year after 14 years at the NFL, talks with SBJ’s Ben Fischer about how his role model parents and older sisters pushed him to shrive, how the power of lifelong learning fuels successful people, and why AMBSE was an opportunity he could not pass up. Asamoah is 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazine’s awards.

Shareable URL copied to clipboard!

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Global/Issues/2012/10/09/Facilities/Rugby-WC.aspx

Sorry, something went wrong with the copy but here is the link for you.

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Global/Issues/2012/10/09/Facilities/Rugby-WC.aspx

CLOSE