RUGBY UNION - The Stadiums of the Magners League

[Lostboy]

Thought I'd do a very rough guide to Premiership Rugby Union, if anyone can locate better photo's please let me know and I'll replace the ones here.

*Indicates it is also used for professional football.

Bath Rugby Club - Recreation Ground

Formerly the Manchester United of Rugby Union in recent years not nearly so successful but still a major team located in the beautiful city of Bath. They play in the Recreation Ground (10,300), but are actively looking for expansion or a move to get capacity above 15,000.





Bristol Rugby Club - Memorial Ground*

Formerly owners, Bristol fell on hard times and had to become tenants in their own stadium which they share with Bristol Rovers. Capacity stands at 11,500 but will increase to 18,000 with work due to start on this redevelopment soon.



Gloucester - Kingsholm Stadium

One of the few urban areas in England where football definately takes a second place to the pursuit of another sport. Considering the city has a population of just over 100,000 it impressively boasts one of the finest rugby clubs in England.

They play in Kingsholm Stadium where the main stand has recently been replaced by a brand new 7,500 stand with all new facilities, bringing the total capacity of the stadium upto 17,500.





Harlequins Rugby Union - Twickenham Stoop

This London club plays in the 12,500 rather less famous counterpart to the nearby namesake stadium the 82,000 Twickenham Stadium. Nevertheless it is due for an expansion.



Leeds Carnegie - Headingley Stadium

This ground also hosting rugby league and adjacent to the cricket pitch, boasts a capacity of 22,500



Leicester Tigers - Welford Road

One of the largest rugby only stadiums in the country at 16,815, originally they were going to move into Walkers Stadium with Leicester City, but this has since been abandoned. There stadium is alread above the 15,000 threshold so any expansion will come from fan demand.





London Irish - Madjeski Stadium*

Neither a London club, nor an Irish one, nevertheless one of the best supported in the Premiership, it makes use of Majeski Stadium, the only stadium in the country that hosts both Premiership Football and Premiership Rugby! At 24,500 it is adequate for London Irish but not for Reading and is due for an expansion to take it to 38,000



London Wasps - Adams Park*

One of the bigger rugby clubs in terms of achievement, London Wasps has a long proud history and a spate of recent successes including two Heineken Cup Victories. They play in Adams Park which is owned by Wycombe Wanderers a league two club. Capacity is at only 10,000, Wasps have indicated that they are unhappy with this, especially as new rules will state a minimum capacity of 15,000 for Premiership Clubs, they have also expressed discontent at not owning their own stadium.



Newcastle Falcons - Kingston Park

This club famous for being the home club of Jonny Wilkinson has achieved only modest success at national and European Level. It's stadium at 10,000 is rather small and they'd need to seek an expansion or move by 2010, nevertheless it has rather good facilities for a stadium of its size.



Sale Sharks - Edgeley Park*

Sharing the same stadium as Stockpot County FC, the capacity is around 11,000, meaning Sale will need to consider a move at some point if they are to keep their Premiership status.



Saracens - Vicarage Road*

This Watford based club plays in Watford City, a Championship Club that last season played in the Premiership, their subsequent relegation meant only Reading's Madjeski Stadium hosts rugby and football at the top levels. Despite Saracens better league the disparity in popularity between rugby and football means they play as tenants to Watford. The stadium is 19,920 one of the largest in the Guinness Premiership but was the smallest in the Barclaycard Premiership last year.



Worcester Warriors - Sixaways Stadium

One of the smallest cities to host premiership rugby, they play in Sixaways Stadium. Current capacity is at 10,197, but current work is increaing it to 13,200.

[CorliCorso]

Originally Posted by Lostboy

Bristol Rugby Club - Memorial Ground*

Formerly owners, Bristol fell on hard times and had to become tenants in their own stadium which they share with Bristol Rovers. Capacity stands at 11,500 but will increase to 18,000 with work due to start on this redevelopment soon.

18,500 for Bristol Rugby, it'll be 18,000 for football because of segregation.

What are the seating capacities for Kingsholm, Bath, Worcester and Harlequins?

I don't see why they're still insisting on a 15,000 minimum - crowds are dipping again this season:
Leicester: 16,793
Gloucester: 14,454
Bath: 10,215
Worcester: 8,721
Leeds: 8,576 (surprised me!)
Harlequins: 8,435
London Wasps: 7,814
Saracens: 7,807
London Irish: 7,491
Bristol: 7,036
Sale: 6,940
Newcastle: 6,194

[CharlieP]

Originally Posted by CorliCorso

I don't see why they're still insisting on a 15,000 minimum - crowds are dipping again this season:

Don't forget that the first six rounds this season took place during the World Cup, which had an effect on attendances. I reckon the final average this season should top 12,000.

2000/01 - 6,177
2001/02 - 7,488
2002/03 - 8,409
2003/04 - 8,560
2004/05 - 10,359
2005/06 - 10,608
2006/07 - 11,506
2007/08 - ???

[Lostboy]

Good upward trend, hopefully if all goes well the 12,000 barrier can be broken.

[Lostboy]

What are the seating capacities for Kingsholm, Bath, Worcester and Harlequins?

17,500
10,300
12,500
10,200

[Lostboy]

Worth adding Northampton Saints, whose 13,500 ground is by far the best in the English Second Tier of Rugby and with 11 wins out of 11, they are almost certainly heading for promotion back into the Guinness Premiership.

[CorliCorso]

Originally Posted by CharlieP

Don't forget that the first six rounds this season took place during the World Cup, which had an effect on attendances. I reckon the final average this season should top 12,000.

2000/01 - 6,177
2001/02 - 7,488
2002/03 - 8,409
2003/04 - 8,560
2004/05 - 10,359
2005/06 - 10,608
2006/07 - 11,506
2007/08 - ???

You'd need everyone to average just over 13,000 for the rest of the season to see 12,000, or about 12,400 to match the previous season. And last week's round 7 saw an average of 10,300. I'm sure the WC had an affect but it can't have knocked that many off the gates; crowds have peaked (for now, at least) and there's no need for all but a handful of teams to have a 15,000 capacity ground.

[CharlieP]

Originally Posted by Lostboy

What are the seating capacities for Kingsholm, Bath, Worcester and Harlequins?

17,500
10,300
12,500
10,200

17,500 is the total capacity at Kingsholm not the seating capacity - the Shed (along one touchline) is a standing terrace.

[CharlieP]

Originally Posted by CorliCorso

You'd need everyone to average just over 13,000 for the rest of the season to see 12,000, or about 12,400 to match the previous season.

That's certainly doable - the next two rounds should have bumper crowds as is traditional at Christmas, plus London Irish will be trying to fill the Mad Jet Ski for the St. Patrick's Day fixture, and Bristol are playing two showcase fixtures at Ashton Gate. Remind me about this thread at the end of the season

crowds have peaked (for now, at least) and there's no need for all but a handful of teams to have a 15,000 capacity ground.

Leicester, Gloucester and Bath all certainly merit a 15,000 ground. Sarries and Irish have both filled their 20,000+ soccer grounds on occasions, and of the rest, only Leeds haven't had the "Sold Out" signs up on multiple occasions in the past couple of seasons.

[Lostboy]

17,500 is the total capacity at Kingsholm not the seating capacity - the Shed (along one touchline) is a standing terrace.

Yeah sorry didn;t read the question properly, hope they never get rid of terracing in Rugby Union, wouldn't be the same at Kingsholm without the shed-heads.

[madjake]

The new stand *C&G* is 7,500 ALL seated

North stand *buildbase* is around 4,000 ALL seated

Therefore just over 11,000 is seated at our beloved Kingsholm!

[madjake]

BTW gloucester has just over 120,000 people now...rising fast thanks to the redevelopment which includes thousands of houses

[plasticterminator]

This is not 100% valid information but as I understand it there will be some interesdting developments within this league over next 5 years re stadiums.
Rumor mill
1. London Irish will quit reading when Brentford build there new stadium and the two clubs will become joint owners of stadium rather than seperate tenants
2. An unamed rugby club has been listed as interested in using post olympic stadium-although this might be Irish covering their options. Could be saracens though.
3. Leicster will completely re develop welford road or move to a new stadium with larger capacity
4. Wasps will def move back into London but it is unclear to where as they are keen to have there own stadium outright which is why they turned down a share with brentford as obviously these two clubs original homes are only 3 miles apart.
5. Sale will make a new stadium but funding is the issue.

[BeestonLad]

Originally Posted by Lostboy

Worth adding Northampton Saints, whose 13,500 ground is by far the best in the English Second Tier of Rugby and with 11 wins out of 11, they are almost certainly heading for promotion back into the Guinness Premiership.

Id say meadow lane is a much better stadium than this

[-james-]

Originally Posted by plasticterminator

This is not 100% valid information but as I understand it there will be some interesdting developments within this league over next 5 years re stadiums.
Rumor mill
1. London Irish will quit reading when Brentford build there new stadium and the two clubs will become joint owners of stadium rather than seperate tenants
2. An unamed rugby club has been listed as interested in using post olympic stadium-although this might be Irish covering their options. Could be saracens though.
3. Leicster will completely re develop welford road or move to a new stadium with larger capacity
4. Wasps will def move back into London but it is unclear to where as they are keen to have there own stadium outright which is why they turned down a share with brentford as obviously these two clubs original homes are only 3 miles apart.
5. Sale will make a new stadium but funding is the issue.

I really hope 4 will happen, I would go to watch Wasps if they played in London. I doubt a return to Loftus Road will ever happen though.

[unfrequented]

Originally Posted by plasticterminator

3. Leicster will completely re develop welford road or move to a new stadium with larger capacity

Yep, a full redevelopment of the stadium to a 30,000 capacity has just been given approval



should be looking like that in 2011

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showth...=542229&page=7

[NeilF]

Stadiums of the Magners League (Rugby Union):

The Magners League is an annual rugby union competition involving regional sides from Ireland, Scotland and Wales. It is one of the three major leagues in Europe, along with the English Guinness Premiership and the French Top 14. The league champion is currently determined solely from league performance, however from the 2009-10 season, it is intended to introduce a play-off structure, similar to the Guinness Premiership. It was originally known as The Celtic League. The Magners League season takes place between September and May, with each team playing every other team on a home and away basis. Magners League matches avoid the traditional international weekends in November and during the Six Nations Championship. The Welsh, Irish and Scottish rugby unions now use the Magners League as the sole determinant for European qualification.


Cardiff Blues

Badge:

Stadium: Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff, Wales.
Capacity: 13,500 (Mix of seats and terracing)

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...um_Stadium.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi....com_Stand.jpg

(Pictures linked due to excessive size)

Renovations: There are no current plans for the renovation of Cardiff Arms Park. On 18th September 2007, Cardiff Blues announced that they would groundshare with Cardiff City F.C. at their new 25,000 all-seated capacity stadium in Leckwith.



Connacht Rugby

Badge:

Stadium: The Sports Ground, Galway, Republic of Ireland.
Capacity: 5,500 (Mix of seats and terracing)




Renovations: There are no current plans for the renovation of the Sportsground.

Edinburgh Rugby

Badge:

Stadium: Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland.
Capacity: 12,500 (All Seated)

Note: Total capacity of Murrayfield is 67,800 but only the lower tier of the West Stand is used for Magners League games.




Renovations: There are no current plans for the renovation of Murrayfield.

Glasgow Warriors

Badge:

Stadium: Firhill Stadium, Glasgow, Scotland.
Capacity: 10,900 (All Seated)




Renovations: Partick Thistle F.C., the owners of Firhill Stadium, announced plans to build a new stand at the disused City End. The new stand was to consist of 1,000 seats as well as residential accommodation and office space. Planning permission was not granted by Glasgow City Council and no subsequent plans have surfaced.

Llanelli Scarlets

Badge:

Stadium: Stradey Park, Lanelli, Wales
Capacity: 10,800 (Mix of seats and terracing)




Renovations: Stradey Park was sold to developer Taylor Wimpey in February 2008, with the Scarlets due to move to the new 14,300 all-seated Parc y Scarlets in Pemberton.




Leinster Rugby

Badge:

Stadium: Royal Dublin Society (RDS) Arena, Dublin, Republic of Ireland.
Capacity: 18,500 (All Seated)




Renovations: The RDS reopened in 2007 with two newly built stands taking capacity to 18,500. There are current but as yet unrealised plans to build a roof on the currently uncovered stand that runs along one sideline. Leinster’s traditional home, Donnybrook Rugby Ground has recently undergone a major facelift and will reopen in September 2008 with an increased capacity of 12,500.

Munster Rugby

Badge:

Stadium: Musgrave Park, Cork, Republic of Ireland and Thomond Park, Limerick, Republic of Ireland
Capacities: Musgrave Park – 8,300 (Mix of seats and terracing). Thomond Park – 12,500 (Mix of seats and terracing)

Musgrave Park:



Thomond Park:



Redevelopments: Thomond Park is currently undergoing a major facelift that will take capacity up to 26,500 with 15,000 seats and 11,000 standing places, as well as corporate and media facilities. In 2003, it was announced that following the redevelopment of Thomond Park, Musgrave Park would be upgraded to a 17,000 all-seated stadium but no definite plans have yet been released.

Thomond Park Redevelopment:




Neath-Swansea Ospreys

Badge:

Stadium: Liberty Stadium, Swansea, Wales
Capacity: 20,500 (All Seated)




Renovations: There are currently no plans to redevelop Liberty Stadium,

Newport-Gwent Dragons

Badge:

Stadium: Rodney Parade, Newport, Wales
Capacity: 11,700 (Mix of seats and terracing)




Redevelopment:

Major plans to build a £40 million state-of-the-art stadium on the site of Rodney Parade have been revealed ensuring the future of rugby in Newport remains in the heart of the city. The 15,000 capacity stadium will be home to Newport RFC and the Newport Gwent Dragons with new training facilities and a clubhouse incorporated in the new development.




Ulster Rugby

Badge:

Stadium: Ravenhill Stadium, Belfast, Northern Ireland
Capacity: 12,300 (Mix of seats and terracing)




Redevelopment: £4.5m redevelopment of terrace side of the ground is due to start in November 2008. The new stand will be built on the existing terracing at Ravenhill, with two thirds of the current standing area retained. The new facility will provide a roof for the currently uncovered terrace and will boast corporate boxes and premium seats with exclusive access to a private bar/lounge facility with an unparalleled view of the Ravenhill pitch. Initially, this redevelopment will reduce Ravenhill’s capacity to 11,500. The new stand is scheduled to be operational by September 2009.

There are future plans to redevelop Ravenhill in three further phases. The second phase, which has already been granted planning permission, is to build a new stand at the War Memorial end of the stadium, which will include 1,000 seats and 1,000 standing spaces as well as a permanent bar. Phase 3 is to replace the current grandstand and promenade at the ground. The final phase is to replicate phase 2 at the Aquinas End of the stadium, which is currently home to the stadium’s corporate facilities.

[Iain1974]

Wonderful too see something other than superstadiums of 50,000+

Thanks for the effort you put in.

[ccfc-4-life]

thanks a lot for this mate, nice to see what the rugby stadiums of the UK are like and what the future of rugby union is shaping up to be. Somebody should do a guinness premiership stadium thread too .

[matthemod]

One thing i've been wondering about the Magner's league, perhaps you'll be able to answer, is that some of the teams mentioned also have teams in other leagues. Basically what i'm saying is, are those teams...the same club as the teams in the other league? I'm wondering just how much of this is making sense.

Basically (as an example) are the Llanelli Scarlets, and Llanelli RFC the same club? But splintered off into two leagues? If so do they share players? It's been bugging me for a while!