Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium (/ˈtwɪkənəm/) in Twickenham, south-west London, England, is a rugby union stadium owned by the Rugby Football Union (RFU), English rugby union governing body, which has its headquarters there. The stadium is England's national rugby union stadium and is the venue of the England national rugby union team home matches.
Not to be confused with Twickenham Stoop.
It is the world's largest rugby union stadium, the second largest stadium in the United Kingdom, behind Wembley Stadium, and the fifth largest in Europe.
The Middlesex Sevens, Premiership Rugby fixtures, Anglo-Welsh Cup matches, the Varsity Match between Oxford and Cambridge universities and European Rugby Champions Cup games have been played at Twickenham Stadium. It has also been used as the venue for the Rugby Football League's Challenge Cup Final in 2001 and 2006, and the NFL London Games in 2016 and 2017.
Twickenham Stadium has hosted concerts by Rihanna, Iron Maiden, Bryan Adams, Bon Jovi, Genesis, U2, Beyoncé, the Rolling Stones, the Police, Eagles, R.E.M., Eminem, Lady Gaga, Metallica and Depeche Mode.
Overview[edit]
Twickenham is often referred to as "the Home of Rugby".[4] The stadium, owned and operated by the RFU, hosts rugby union fixtures all year round. It is the home of the English rugby union team, who play nearly all their home games at the stadium. Twickenham hosts England's home Six Nations matches, as well as games against touring teams from the Southern Hemisphere, usually annually in November.
Apart from its relationship with the national team, Twickenham is the venue for a number of other domestic and international rugby union matches. It hosts the annual London leg of the World Rugby Sevens Series, the Cup (championship) final and third-place match of the annual London leg of the World Rugby Women's Sevens Series, and the domestic Middlesex Sevens competition. It is also the venue for the Premiership Rugby final as well as Harlequins' Big Game at Christmas time and an additional annual fixture hosted by Harlequins in late spring. Anglo-Welsh Cup, Heineken Cup and Champions Cup finals have been held here, and the stadium also hosts The Varsity Match between Oxford and Cambridge, the English schools' Daily Mail Cup Final and the Army Navy Match, which forms the culmination of the annual Inter-Services Competition.
World Rugby Museum[edit]
The World Rugby Museum is a museum located in Twickenham Stadium. The museum covers the whole of the global game, not just English rugby union. It tells the history of the sport, including William Webb Ellis and Richard Lindon, using interactive display techniques. The museum has a rolling programme of special exhibitions which cover topical issues and offer an opportunity to display some of the obscurer items in the collection. Some unique displays include an English rugby union jersey from the first ever rugby union international in 1871 between England and Scotland, and (until 2005) the William Webb Ellis Cup which was obtained by England at the 2003 Rugby World Cup. Twickenham Stadium Tours are also available through the Museum and run four times per day (Tuesday to Saturday) and twice on Sundays. It is usually open every day of the week except for Mondays and on match days, when a special-priced entry is available for match ticket holders only.
