England Rugby 2015, the organiser of the next Rugby World Cup, has announced the long list of 17 potential match venues and, in a shock decision, there is no room for the biggest club rugby stadium in the country.
Welford Road, the home of the Leicester Tigers, was snubbed with Leicester City FC’s stadium preferred instead.
Just three of the 17 shortlisted are rugby venues: Gloucester’s Kingsholm, the Millennium Stadium and Twickenham.
Meanwhile, the home grounds of Manchester United, Newcastle, Sunderland, Aston Villa and Southampton are all on the shortlist.
In a statement, the Tigers said they were “hugely disappointed” by their omission.
“Welford Road has hosted many major occasions over the years, including visits from South Africa, Australia and Argentina national teams in recent seasons. It is home to the best-supported and most successful club in the history of the professional game in this country and, as such, we believe is worthy of Rugby World Cup status,” chairman Peter Tom said.
“That the organisers of RWC2015 do not think this an appropriate venue for its fixtures is disappointing and confusing – both for the professional club game in this country and for its supporters.”
The final list of 10 to 12 venues will be finalised early in 2013 after the tournament match schedule has been formulated. The pool draw is being held on 3 December in London.
The shortlist:
- Villa Park, Birmingham
- Brighton Community Stadium, Brighton
- Ashton Gate, Bristol
- Millennium Stadium, Cardiff
- Coventry Stadium, Coventry
- Pride Park, Derby
- Kingsholm, Gloucester
- Elland Road, Leeds
- Leicester City Stadium, Leicester
- Olympic Stadium, London
- Twickenham Stadium, London
- Wembley Stadium, London
- Old Trafford, Manchester
- Stadiummk, Milton Keynes
- St James’ Park, Newcastle
- St Mary’s Stadium, Southampton
- Stadium of Light, Sunderland
Read all the analysis and reactions to the shortlist in Sunday’s edition of The Rugby Paper.
