Twickenham’s status as the home of England rugby is under threat after licensing restrictions forfeited the opportunity to host a series of lucrative Beyonce concerts.
RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney has hinted at ditching the Allianz Stadium in south west London in favour of Milton Keynes or Birmingham if they are not permitted to host more major non-rugby events at the iconic London venue.
The governing body has pressed Richmond borough council to up the number of non-rugby events per year, currently sitting at three with a restricted capacity of 55,000, to 15 events for audiences of up to 82,000.
However, should Richmond not bow to these requests, Sweeney has insisted that relocation from Twickenham could very much be on the table.
“There are plenty of places that would like to have us. Birmingham, Milton Keynes would love to have us there,” Sweeney said on the " target="_blank" class="link"> Business of Sport podcast.
“Part of the renovation from 2027 means we are in discussions with Richmond borough council to stage more non-rugby events. For us it is three [events] and we are only allowed one on a Friday.
“We have had The Rolling Stones. We could have had Beyoncé but she wanted three nights and we are only allowed two nights consecutively.
“We are saying: ‘If we are going to invest £600m into the Allianz — and we have a study which shows how much economic value it contributes to the borough — you are going to have to work with us in terms of an increase in the number of events we can stage in order to monetise the stadium.’”
Twickenham is only seven months into a 13-year £130m naming rights deal with Allianz, but plans for a £600m redevelopment would reportedly not be viable if the ground doesn’t diversify its event programme.
The RFU is eager to take Twickenham in the direction of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, which capitalised on the home of rugby’s unavailability to snap up Beyonce, housing her Cowboy Carter Tour for six nights in the summer.
Spurs’ state-of-the-art ground, which also regularly host to the NFL, is licensed for 30 non-football events every year - 10 times that of Twickenham.
However, if the RFU is to seek pastures new, they will have to do it outside of London due to insufficient funds.
Sweeney’s power in English rugby may not last long enough for him to explore a change in scenery, though, as he faces a vote of no confidence next Thursday.
The chief executive has been the subject of a grassroots revolt after executive pay at the RFU was exposed, which saw performance-related bonuses take Sweeney’s income to over £1m.
The pay controversy has led to those in the grassroots game to feel disenfranchised and express grievances over the grassroots leadership.
Sweeney says he is committed to governance reform but may be ousted from the hierarchy next week, which has already seen chairman Tom Ilube resign.
