Premiership Rugby Execs Expect Sellout For Newcastle-Saracens Match In Philadelphia

Premiership Rugby expects its game between Newcastle and Saracens in Philadelphia on Sept. 16 to sell out, according to Martin Pengelly of the London GUARDIAN. Execs from the league, Saracens and promoter AEG said that they were "not concerned that the September game, the first in a new four-year deal, will fall on a weekend of NFL and college football." Newcastle will be the "home" team at the Talen Energy Stadium, the home of MLS side Philadelphia Union. The stadium holds 18,500 and has "sold out for rugby union before," when the U.S. lost 29-19 to the All Blacks in '13. Premiership Rugby Commercial Dir Dominic Hayes said, "It's integral to the success of this project that the game is sold out. We need to build it and become a fixture in the Philadelphia sporting calendar." The Philadelphia game "sees AEG taking over U.S. promotion from TLA." AEG Rugby Dir Dan Lyle said, "One hundred percent we need to sell the game out. That's got to be the goal. We'll be disappointed if we don't get near enough" (GUARDIAN, 6/24).