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#Post#: 135403--------------------------------------------------
RFU threat to leave Twickenham will not silence residents who
have heard enough
DIR By: deadlyfrom5yardsout
Date: March 20, 2025, 2:52 am
---------------------------------------------------------
Bill Sweeney says move to Birmingham or Milton Keynes is
possible if governing body is refused permission to hold 15 more
events at stadium
Alan Cochrane
Alan Cochrane
Related Topics
RFU, Twickenham Stadium
19 March 2025 6:47pm GMT
99
Gift this article free
Bill Sweeney, at Twickenham this month, is demanding more events
are held at the ground
The RFU chief executive, Bill Sweeney, is determined to utilise
Twickenham more Credit: Getty Images/Glyn Kirk
If the Rugby Football Union gets its way Twickenham will soon
echo more readily to screams for Taylor Swift and Beyonce than
the more usual cheers for the likes of Joe Marler and Marcus
Smith.
And if they are refused permission to hold 15 more events at the
giant stadium they might move out of London altogether to
Birmingham or Milton Keynes, says chief executive Bill Sweeney.
Having given themselves huge bonuses through the extraordinary
bonus scheme known as the Long-Term Incentive Plan, England’s
rugby chiefs are now in line for more controversy thanks to
their money-making plans to turn the self-styled Home of Rugby,
now known as the Allianz Stadium, into one of Britain’s biggest
rock and pop venues.
Current restrictions limit the number of concerts which can be
held at the stadium to three in a single year, and only on two
consecutive nights, with a capacity restriction of 55,000.
But the tone of Sweeney’s latest remarks will not help him win
support. Threatening to “up sticks and leave” if the RFU’s plan
for many more non-rugby events, all with 80,000-plus capacity,
is blocked by Richmond borough council is bound to be seen as
more of a threat than an encouragement for councillors and
residents to back the proposal.
The Twickenham ground, pictured, could host more events with the
permitted capacity raised to 80,000 from 55,000
Twickenham could host more money-spinning events with the
permitted capacity raised to 80,000 from 55,000 Credit:
PA/Gareth Fuller
Residents already accept – most of them willingly – a lot of
disruption to their lives thanks to the stadium’s current use.
But doubling the number of events when the very poor road and
rail transport infrastructure remains the same is asking a great
deal from those who live near English rugby’s HQ,
Sweeney may hope his neighbours will put up with the burdens he
is asking of them but in that hope he may be in for a shock. All
the more so when he appears to be issuing a threat that says:
“Do what we want or we’re off.”
The RFU has scheduled three “Share Your Thoughts” meetings for
next week, at which residents can not only tell Allianz and the
RFU what they think of the plans but also tell English rugby’s
chiefs and their sponsors what their reaction is to the proposal
to double the number of events at the famous ground.
It currently hosts around a dozen rugby matches and three pop
concerts every year. But the RFU hopes the council will agree to
doubling that number with 15 pop and music concerts, playing to
a maximum of 80,000 fans.
But many residents living near the ground had what can only be
described as an uneasy Christmas while they awaited the full
details of what is proposed they did not much fancy what is on
offer. The plan has yet to be approved by Richmond council and
at time of writing, the RFU had still not submitted its detailed
application, which councillors had expected three months ago.
Money ‘will roll in’
The principal reason for residents’ doubts is simple – the
so-called RFU consultation exercise carried out with residents
was a sham, given that a great many people were not consulted.
None of my neighbours received the questionnaire that included a
loaded question about which “events” residents would like to see
at the famous old ground.
As far as we know the RFU thinks that all the money it needs
will come rolling in if local residents agree to the disturbance
they already have to put up with by international rugby matches
and several other events if their number increased. The 15 extra
events it wants would mean rugby taking a pretty poor second
place in the stadium’s list of priorities, because all the
extras would be of a non-sporting nature, such as hugely
expensive rock and pop concerts where the sky is the limit for
ticket prices.
But with the rugby authorities insisting that they will be
bidding against other international venues – Wembley, for
instance , which has a setting tailor-made for coping with big
crowds – they seem confident of seeing the “new” Twickenham
attracting the biggest rock and pop acts in the world.
Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones dances on the Twickenham stage
Mick Jagger on the Twickenham stage when the Rolling Stones
played Credit: Getty Images/Jim Dyson
How that could take place without a massive change in crowd
arrangements and travel facilities around the stadium is surely
a serious concern. It is a worry shared by rugby fans
everywhere, about how awful the current transport links are to
the ground. This is compounded by overcrowding and by the poor
stewarding that is making the idea of nearly doubling the use of
the stadium a ridiculous and possibly dangerous notion.
In the view of many residents it is only a matter of time before
there is a serious accident, either en route to the stadium or
at the massively overcrowded Twickenham railway station.
So-called security personnel initially stopped one neighbour
driving his sick toddler to hospital recently and another friend
was physically prevented from walking through the crowds to her
own house. The latter is an all-too-common occurrence.
The RFU is ultimately responsible for this sort of behaviour and
it renders its claim of indulging in a “continuing dialogue”
with residents entirely risible. The truth is that “Big Rugby”
announces what is coming their way and residents are expected to
put up with it .
Biggest issue for future
Many residents are content to live with the existing disturbance
caused by rugby. But another 15 “event days” must surely be out
of the question.
The RFU may represent a highly competitive sport but it should
remember that residents deserve a say in the way their
neighbourhood is run. The fact that Allianz, a company that says
it cares about social responsibility, is now a major sponsor is
encouraging. Perhaps some of its views might rub off on the
tough guys at the RFU.
However, by far the biggest issue for the future of the stadium
is the current rotten transport infrastructure. And if rugby
chiefs would only lift their eyes from their pocketbooks they
would see that the long promised new south-west London transport
hub at Hounslow, to replace the overstretched Twickenham railway
station, must come to fruition before any increase in crowds is
contemplated.
We should also put to one side some of the RFU’s hard-luck
stories about its dire financial state. We are not dealing here
with Oxfam, Save the Children or any other charity.
It may represent one of England’s best loved sports but in the
final analysis the RFU is an entirely commercial entity and if
it hits hard times it cannot look to its neighbours to help bail
it out.
#Post#: 135405--------------------------------------------------
Re: RFU threat to leave Twickenham will not silence residents
who have heard enough
DIR By: Fearless Fred
Date: March 20, 2025, 3:37 am
---------------------------------------------------------
Hardly the most neutral of articles. The language throughout is
based off this being a bad thing & writing to push that view.
personally I think this would be a good thing. The RFU have an
asset that they're being held back from utilising to the full.
The restrictions of only one Friday event, only three events
total, and only two allowed on consecutive nights really puts
the kibosh on it for most larger events. Add in the reduced
capacity, and it's no wonder that they miss out on events to
Tottenham, Wembley, London Stadium, etc.
Yes, there's issues with transport, but they aren't
insurmountable & can even be used to help drive upgrades &
improvements to the whole transport infrastructure in the area.
#Post#: 135406--------------------------------------------------
Re: RFU threat to leave Twickenham will not silence residents
who have heard enough
DIR By: MaidstoneQuin
Date: March 20, 2025, 3:39 am
---------------------------------------------------------
Can't we just send Sweeney to Birmingham and leave it at that?
#Post#: 135436--------------------------------------------------
Re: RFU threat to leave Twickenham will not silence residents
who have heard enough
DIR By: DazzaS
Date: March 20, 2025, 6:41 am
---------------------------------------------------------
This is clearly an empty threat.
Yes they will get a certain amount if they sold Twickenham, but
then then need to buy land, go through a whole new planning
application, go through the objections, back and forth etc,
pouring a significant amount of money into legal issues.
RFU are going no where. They know it, the council knows it and
the residents know it.
The residents cannot complain though. Twickenham has been there
well before the residents were born and brings a lot of money to
the area. In a time where hospitality is on its knees, Richmond
Council need to approve extra dates and events to bring money
into the area and secure jobs.
#Post#: 135437--------------------------------------------------
Re: RFU threat to leave Twickenham will not silence residents
who have heard enough
DIR By: MaidstoneQuin
Date: March 20, 2025, 6:46 am
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: DazzaS link ---
>
> The residents cannot complain though. Twickenham has been
there well before the residents were born and brings a lot of
money to the area. In a time where hospitality is on its knees,
Richmond Council need to approve extra dates and events to bring
money into the area and secure jobs.
>
--- End Quote ---
Very true. Its like idiots who buy properties overlooking A
roads etc but complain about the noise from traffic.
#Post#: 135445--------------------------------------------------
Re: RFU threat to leave Twickenham will not silence residents
who have heard enough
DIR By: never sleep
Date: March 20, 2025, 8:28 am
---------------------------------------------------------
I don't think that the local residents (of whom I am one) can
complain about rugby being played at a rugby stadium that was
here 90 odd years before I was.
But -
We can complain about the stadium being transitioned into a
concert venue.
The main problem is that the area struggles to cope with concert
crowds. It is very difficult to disperse a late night crowd.
Until they fix that issue, they will have objections.
And - I don't think that putting a few buses on to Richmond
station or putting a few marshals with loudhailers in Twickenham
is fixing the problem.
#Post#: 135446--------------------------------------------------
Re: RFU threat to leave Twickenham will not silence residents
who have heard enough
DIR By: XL5
Date: March 20, 2025, 10:50 am
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: DazzaS link ---
>
> This is clearly an empty threat.
>
> Yes they will get a certain amount if they sold Twickenham,
but then then need to buy land, go through a whole new planning
application, go through the objections, back and forth etc,
pouring a significant amount of money into legal issues.
>
> RFU are going no where. They know it, the council knows it and
the residents know it.
>
> The residents cannot complain though. Twickenham has been
there well before the residents were born and brings a lot of
money to the area. In a time where hospitality is on its knees,
Richmond Council need to approve extra dates and events to bring
money into the area and secure jobs.
>
--- End Quote ---
Excellent post.
#Post#: 135456--------------------------------------------------
Re: RFU threat to leave Twickenham will not silence residents
who have heard enough
DIR By: Camquin
Date: March 21, 2025, 5:35 am
---------------------------------------------------------
The RFU could move, on the other hand
HTML https://www.newcivilengineer.com/latest/populous-wsp-turner-townsend-arup-working-on-ambitious-twickenham-stadium-upgrade-19-03-2025/
#Post#: 135461--------------------------------------------------
Re: RFU threat to leave Twickenham will not silence residents
who have heard enough
DIR By: deadlyfrom5yardsout
Date: March 21, 2025, 5:57 am
---------------------------------------------------------
Ground Share with wendyball @ Wemberley?
#Post#: 135462--------------------------------------------------
Re: RFU threat to leave Twickenham will not silence residents
who have heard enough
DIR By: never sleep
Date: March 21, 2025, 6:26 am
---------------------------------------------------------
I was giving this some thought.
Twickenham as a concert venue is really just a bit rubbish.
The closest transport link is Twickenham station - which is a
long way away and involves crossing Chertsey road and walking
down Whitton road. Any event closes Whitton road (and Rugby
road) and has a massive impact on traffic through the area -
e.g. the A3/A316 which is a major route into London.
Some of this could be helped by building tunnels - but not
simple. Maybe being a traffic tunnel for the A316 underneath the
London road roundabout would be an option
Then, Twickenham station is only served by SW Railways. I don't
think that there is any coordination with TFL - so, it is
difficult to consider late night services. So, it is hard to get
home.
Also, as we all know, there is often weekend engineering work on
these services.
Then, lastly, when you travel to a gig and you leave the
station, there isn't really anything to do other than go to the
stadium. I.e. there are no restaurants or bars between the
station and the stadium. (Many people going to a gig won't
consider turning left out of the station.)
Now, compare this to going to a gig at the O2.
The underground goes there. So, although the Jubilee doesn't run
24/7, it does connect to lines that do - so, easy to get home.
And - there are loads of places to eat and drink.
The O2 also has other entertainment options. So, there are
reasons that people would go there on other days even if they
are not going to a gig.
I think that if the RFU want to make the RFU appealing as a
venue for events other than rugby, then they need to be really
visionary.
They need to update the pitch so that it is multi functional (as
per Tottenham) with a slot in field that allows events to happen
without damaging the grass.
The need to create a plaza with restaurants / bars / other
entertainment facilities (e.g. cinemas/bowling/etc)
I reckon that there is plenty of space for this although they
may want to look at purchasing land from the 3 schools in the
immediate vicinity. (Cardinal Vaughn/Chase Bridge/Kneller Hall)
or from whomever owns the Duke of Cambridge close (the MoD ?)
And - lastly (and probably most importantly) they need a rail
station. One option would be to build a branch line from
Isleworth station. There is a plan to add this line to the
London Overground. It could probably be extended to the stadium
without impacting many residences as the larger part of the
route would go through Thames Water land.
If the stadium was being used all year round (like the O2), then
this could really be justified and gives the whole Ivybridge
estate access to a mass transit system.
Clearly, this would be a huge development - but, I think that
this is the sort of vision they should be presenting.
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