By SK88
October 10 2012

  On the 8th of October the 2015 World Cup Organising committee released the long list of 17 venues bidding for the right to stage games. The 17 venues are spread right across the country with London the only city with multiple venues chosen. Only 1 Premiership venue is included, 10 which have previously hosted Rugby matches and two 2 which are regular international venues. 13 are principally football grounds and 5 of those are currently Premier League football grounds.

1. Ashton Gate (21,497) 
Rugby? Yes
International Rugby? Yes
When? 1908 and 1999
Pitch Dimensions 109x69m

2.AMEX Stadium (27,350)
Rugby? No
Pitch Dimensions 105x69m

3. Elland Road (37,697)
Rugby? No
 Pitch Dimensions 105x68m

4. King Power Stadium (32,262)
Rugby? Yes
When? Last time was 2009
International Rugby? Yes
Recently? SA v World XV, 2006
Pitch Dimensions 110x70m

5. Kingsholm (16,500)
Rugby? Obviously!
When? Last week!
International Rugby? Yes
When? Ireland v Barbarians Last summer
Pitch Dimensions 112x70m

6. Millennium Stadium (74,500)
Rugby? Yes, rather a lot.
International Rugby? Again, a fair bit.
Pitch Dimensions 120x79m

7. Old Trafford (75,765)
Rugby? Yes
International Rugby? Yes
Recently? England v Argentina 2009
Pitch Dimensions 106x68m

8. Olympic Stadium (60,000)
Rugby? No
Pitch Dimensions Unknown

9. Pride Park (33,597)
Rugby? No
Pitch Dimensions 109x67m

10. Ricoh Arena (32,609)
Rugby? Yes!
When? Last game was EDF semi finals in 2009

11. Stadium MK (22,000- Increased to 32,000 by 2015)
Rugby? Yes
When? Northampton have played 3 Heineken Cup games there and Saracens have also played there
International Rugby? No
Pitch Dimensions 111x70m

12. Stadium of Light (49,000)
Rugby? No
Pitch Dimensions 107x68m

13. St James' Park (52,387)
Rugby? No
Pitch Dimensions 105x68m

14. St Mary's Stadium (32,689)
Rugby? No
Pitch Dimensions 104x68m

15. Twickenham (82,000)
Rugby? Yes!
International Rugby? Loads!
Pitch Dimensions 125x70m

16. Villa Park (42,788)
Rugby? Yes
International Rugby? Yes
Recently? Not really, last game was in 1953 when the All Blacks played Midland Counties
Pitch Dimensions 105mx68m

17. Wembley (90,000)
Rugby? Yes
When? Saracens play there regularly
International Rugby?
Yes
Recently? Australia v Barbarians in 2008 and Saracens v South Africa 2009.
Pitch Dimensions 111x68m

Note on pitch dimensions: All gathered from using the measure tool on Google Maps

These can be split into 8 areas:
London: Twickenham, Wembley, Olympic

South Coast: Amex (Birghton), St. Mary’s (Southampton)

Wales/West: Ashton Gate (Bristol), Millennium Stadium (Cardiff), Kingsholm (Gloucester)

West Midlands: Villa Park (Birmingham), Ricoh Arena (Coventry)

East Midlands: Pride Park (Derby), King Power Stadium (Leicester), Stadium:MK (Milton Keynes)

North West: Old Trafford (Manchester)

Yorkshire/North East: Elland Road (Leeds), Stadium of Light (Sunderland), St James’ Park (Newcastle)

One concern regularly raised has been playing in football stadiums with small in goal areas and smaller pitches. Compared to Twickenham and the Millennium Stadium then all the stadiums come up short however almost all the pitches will be the same length as Welford Road; which has hosted games in two previous Rugby World Cups, international rugby all the way back to 1902 and regular Premiership and European Rugby without anyone batting an eyelid. It’s not great to have only two full size pitches during a World Cup, but it is pretty much unavoidable as even the larger capacity club Rugby grounds have small pitches.

Which stadiums will be chosen?

Obviously Twickenham and the Millennium Stadium; the others are more of a toss-up though it seems Sir Peter Soulsby has actually earned his dosh for once and convinced England 2015 to stage games in Leicester, at the King Power rather than Welford Road due to the disappointing lack of vision from Simon Cohen and those who hold the purse strings. As stadiums must be “clean” for the World Cup I look forward to everyone having to call the “King Power” the “Raw Dykes Stadium”, childish as I am, should it be chosen.

Back in London, Wembley and the Olympic Stadium seem like givens. Whilst people in the RFU might be obsessed by the north the facts remain that more people live in the south-east, with the south coast as a major population centre it would be a major surprise if both Brighton and Southampton missed out. Complications with the Premier League might make Brighton more likely, though by 2015 Southampton are just as likely to be in the Championship. On the same theme the Stadium MK must be close to the thoughts of England 2015 as Milton Keyenes and surrounds are a highly populated area.

In the West Country it would be a surprise, though hardly massive, if both Gloucester and Bristol hosted games (along with Cardiff just over the bridge). It would be a shame if no club Rugby ground hosted a game which might make Gloucester seem more likely but Bristol is a city with 50 rugby clubs and along with Leicester are arguably the only major cities where Rugby is a major sport.

In the West Midlands Villa Park would be my choice, it is a brilliant stadium and the capacity will be needed if the ambition of 2.9m tickets is to be achieved.

Old Trafford seems a certainty to host as many games as possible, with Alex Ferguson apparently giving his approval and its de facto role as “Stadium for the North”.

The North East seems a real positive area for the Rugby World Cup as both Newcastle and Sunderland seem very keen to host games and civic rivalry is helping keep both in the race. Stadium of Light is probably the better stadium but St.James’ Park is iconic and superbly located pride of place right in the centre of town rather than hidden in a dip and a bit out of the way.

Yorkshire is a major area for Rugby with that County Body having the most clubs affiliated to it (103); however Elland Road just isn’t really suitable for the World Cup. Its playing area is one of the smallest and at only 37,000 it isn’t a particularly large stadium either. With Manchester to the west, Leicester to the south and Newcastle to the north Yorkshire may well end up divided and conquered. 

RWC2015 - The Stadiums

Discussion started by TheLeicesterTigers.co.uk , 10/10/2012 20:52

TheLeicesterTigers.co.uk
10/10/2012 20:52

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2012:10:15:20:08:12 by Tiggs.

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SK 88
10/10/2012 21:01

This article was actually written before monday and had to undergo a very quick re-write and edit to reflect the new shortlist!

I seem to have missed out the Ricoh's pitch dimensions as well. For the record they are very slightly longer than King Power but the same width.

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Stopsy
10/10/2012 21:10

Thanks SK, it will be interesting to see the final selection.

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Tiggs
10/10/2012 22:11

Thanks SK88, I look forward to the following RWC articles yet to come !!

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Yorkie
10/10/2012 22:41

"due to the disappointing lack of vision from Simon Cohen and those who hold the purse strings"


Your view but not mine.

If staging a RWC game costs the club more to stage than the income generated then it becomes a vanity project which we can do without. Invest our limited cash in the long term future of Leicester Tigers rather than waste it upon an RFU vanity project.

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SK 88
10/10/2012 22:44

Well I wrote it so yep it is my view and I stand by it. I understand and respect the other view, but can't agree with it.

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Yorkie
10/10/2012 23:08

Fair enough and likewise which is why I didn't "attack" your view.

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Johns
11/10/2012 09:42

Taking the plan for Welford Road to redevelop the remaining three sides does any one know what the pitch size will be if it is completed?

I support the clubs cautious approach to developing our ground, after all the club were saddled with large (at the time) debts for many years after the initial development was made.

How big is our total pitch area including the in goal areas?

How big will the pitches be on the selected grounds excluding the in goal areas?

Have any discussions been held between clubs and the RFU/RWC2015 on ground availability and facilities including pitch requirements?

Tigers development is linked with the Granby Hall site plus the multi story car park at the rear of the Crumbie, all linked to the Royal Infirmary and the University of Leicester. Delays are almost certain to be linked to the current financial situation.

Perhaps we should change the shape of the ball we play with as the round ball game I think received grants from the public purse to make their stadiums all seater (a statuary requirement) plus large public funding was made available for the Wembley redevelopment, compare with the Cat stand built with out subsidy plus Tigers had to pay for upgrading the roads and paths around the stadium. I think the RFU also did not receive any subsidiary for Twickenham redevelopment.

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Rich W
11/10/2012 10:34

Can I ask a genuine questio about pitch sizes.

A soccer pitch measured at, say, 105mx68m represents the entire playing suface doesn't it as soccer has effectively no in-goal areas. Is a rugby pitch measured as the same? I think that I read that the length of the Welford Rd pitch is given as the distance betweeen the goal lines?

So for Villa Park - it's the one I plucked out at random - at 105m long - deducting c 5 metres at each end for the in-goal leave the pitch at 95 metres.

I'm starting to think that pitch size (length anyway) is something of a red herring.

Last night on RL Rugby Hr, Simon Ward alluded to the 'stadium template' and having the right space in which to be able have the cameras etc in exactly the same configuration at every ground. That sounds quite likely to me - and a completely ludicrous reason to make such a decision.

...

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SK 88
11/10/2012 12:53

All pitch dimensions are total length and width of the grassed areas, basically the longest a pitch could possibly be.

Welford Road, including end zones is roughly 104/105m, with the posts 90m apart. The touchlines are 63m apart, though I gather there is room to widen the pitch by a meter or so (Google Maps is pre Cat stand so I don't know the current maximum width). 5m is quite a lot narrower really (7.35%).

Kingsholm for instance is 95/96m long, post to post and 112 meters dead ball line to dead ball line.

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Yorkie
11/10/2012 13:21

Not sure the room exists or the intension is there to increase our pitch size as the ground redevelopment continues. There is some space on the Cat side as when the Crumbie side is redeveloped, the pitch will move towards the Cat stand. 7.5 metres movement I seem to recall but don't rely on this distance as being 100% accurate,

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Rich W
11/10/2012 13:30

As Tiggs pointed out the other day the removal of the temporary stand and the laying of 'additional' pitch in it's place would offer scope to increase the length - at a guess by approx 4-5 metres? Of course the club may not feel that reasonable or worthwhile but none of this seems insurmountable.

Wardy's suggestion seems far more likely imo.

...

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Yorkie
11/10/2012 14:16

Thought as the ground was redeveloped a new stand was to be built in place of the clubhouse and temp stand? Quite tight at that end already with the road being there. Cat footprint will have been decided with rest of redevelopment in mind.

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Rich W
11/10/2012 14:25

I think that's right - but as an arrangement pro-tem it would be possible to extend the pitch if the temp satnd were to be removed. As I say - I am unsure the club would think it worthwhile.

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Yorkie
11/10/2012 14:33

Don't know.

From a practicle point of view:

Reduces capacity.

Lots of tarmac to dig up.

Would there still be the correct circulation area available?

Big problem might be the control box?


In conclusion, probably not?

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Rich W
11/10/2012 15:07

All understood.

...

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Tiggs
11/10/2012 19:33

Don't forget that both the clubhouse end and the A&L will go, so the pitch will be able to be longer once the development is completed, or should that be if it is completed ?

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Yorkie
12/10/2012 00:37

True Tiggs but the plans for everything else will have been decided when they placed the Cat stand where they did. Hope they can and do extend the pitch length but the site is really tight at both ends due to the major, immoveable roads immediately adjacent to our site.

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SK 88
12/10/2012 10:17

it is possible to build the stands to hang over the roads (Villa Park has a stand like this), I'm no architect but I'm pretty sure that would cost A LOT so the gain would have to be a lot too. That stand won't realistically be rebuilt until 2025 or later so the technology might become cheaper or the need greater.

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IDLETIMES
12/10/2012 12:43

If the full redevelopment doe's go ahead the pitch will 'move' about 1 metre nearer to the clubhouse end and 10 metres nearer to the 'Cat'. As far as I know there are no plans to widen the pitch.
With regards to the RWC. saga, I agree with Yorkie,that is certainly the impression we had from Simon.

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SK 88
12/10/2012 13:29

It isn't 10 metres.

It can't be because there isn't that much room. 10 metres is roughly a 3 story house.

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Tiggs
15/10/2012 20:07

Thanks again SK88 !!

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