Not having blogged for a couple of months, I’m a bit late to this story. But the last week has really solidified my opposition to the shortlist of stadiums drawn up by Rugby World Cup 2015 organisers.
Only three rugby-first stadiums are on the list for the first RWC to be hosted by England since 1991: Twickenham, Kingsholm (Gloucester) and the Millennium Stadium.
This rugby ground will not be hosting the Rugby World Cup
In the last seven days I have been fortunate enough to go to Heineken Cup matches at Franklin’s Gardens, Northampton, and Welford Road, Leicester. Both, and particularly the latter, were pretty miffed at having not made the shortlist of 17 (from which 12 will be chosen in the new year).
This football ground (Stadium MK) could host the Rugby World Cup
This rugby ground (Franklin’s Gardens) will not be hosting the Rugby World Cup
Last weekend, I also managed to catch a game at Stadium MK in Milton Keynes. That soulless identikit ground (cf. Liberty Stadium, Cardiff City Stadium, King Power Stadium, Pride Park…*) has been chosen for the World Cup shortlist, along with a host of football grounds from Newcastle to Brighton.
It’s a huge shame rugby grounds in England have been overlooked. Welford Road and Franklin’s Gardens are where English rugby is based. They are old grounds, which have character and a history of rugby. In Cardiff, the Blues’ return to the smaller Cardiff Arms Park has been welcomed by fans (though admittedly, it shouldn’t be an issue of not being able to fill the stadiums at the World Cup, which was a problem for the Blues at Cardiff City Stadium.
And all that’s not even considering the potential logistical problems of trying to fit a Rugby World Cup into football stadiums during the football season.
The financial arguments in favour of using grounds like Wembley and Old Trafford are obvious. But it is hard to see why Ashton Gate in Bristol, which has a capacity of 21,500, should get the nod ahead of Welford Road (24,000). Or, on the other hand, why Kingsholm (16,000) was chosen at all.
There has to be a balance between revenue and the “spirit” of the World Cup. Unfortunately, it looks as if organisers have sacrificed the latter for the sake of a couple of thousand more punters being able to fit into a Milton Keynes industrial estate.
*Also St Mary’s Stadium, Madejski Stadium, Riverside Stadium, Stadium of Light…
An Early Bath 
And the Millennium Stadium isn’t even in England, but that’s another argument.
There was a lot of negative criticism from the Welsh media, which always likes to think of Wales as the centre of modernity, when Pontypool Park staged a 1991 Rugby World Cup game.
With no electronic scoreboard, the crowd had to be informed that Australia were represented by Pontypool on the scoreboard and ‘Visitors’ were Western Samoa.
Yes, that’s poor but I don’t think such a problem overshadows all that is good about staging rugby’s premier event in a traditional rugby ground. Of course Pontypool park wouldn’t be up to staging a RWC game today, but Welford Road certainly is.
I agree: Netherdale (Galashiels) hosted a game in 1999 and that was slightly too small, but Welford Road, Franklin’s Gardens, The Stoop and Kingsholm are all capable of being involved. Perhaps England feels it has to compete with France 2007 when all venues were 30,000+
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