_Logo.svg){kind=logo} | |
 Aerial view of Twickenham Stadium | |
 Interactive map of Twickenham Stadium Allianz Stadium Twickenham | |
| Address | 200 Whitton Road Twickenham TW2 7BA[2] |
|---|---|
| Location | London, England |
| Coordinates | 51°27′21″N0°20′29″W / 51.45583°N 0.34139°W /51.45583; -0.34139 |
| Public transit |  Twickenham |
| Owner | RFU |
| Executive suites | 150 |
| Capacity | 82,000 (rugby)[3] 75,000 (American football) 55,000 (concerts; limited) |
| Field size | 125 m × 70 m |
| Surface | Desso GrassMaster |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1907; 118 years ago (1907) |
| Opened | 2 October 1909; 116 years ago (1909-10-02) |
| Renovated | 2005–2008 |
| Architect | John Bradley |
| Tenants | |
| England national rugby union team Harlequins (2008–present; selected matches) Bath Rugby (2017–2019, selected matches) | |
| Website | |
| allianzstadiumtwickenham.com | |
Twickenham Stadium (/ˈtwɪkənəm/; usually known asTwickenham, and for sponsorship purposes known as theAllianz Stadium Twickenham) is arugby union stadium inTwickenham, London, England. It is owned by theRugby Football Union (RFU), the English rugby union governing body, which has its headquarters there. The stadium is England'snational rugby union stadium and is the venue for theEngland national rugby union team's home matches.
Twickenham is the world's largest rugby union stadium, the second largest stadium in the United Kingdom (behindWembley Stadium), and thefourth largest in Europe. TheMiddlesex Sevens,Premiership Rugby fixtures,Anglo-Welsh Cup matches,Harlequins' annualBig Game, theVarsity Match betweenOxford andCambridge universities andEuropean Rugby Champions Cup games have been played there. It has also been used as the venue for theRugby Football League'sChallenge Cup Final in 2001 and 2006, and theNFL London Games in 2016 and 2017.
The stadium has hosted concerts by artists such asRihanna,Iron Maiden,Bryan Adams,Bon Jovi,Genesis,U2,Beyoncé,the Rolling Stones,the Police,Eagles,R.E.M.,Eminem,Lady Gaga,Metallica,Depeche Mode and NSPPD Prayer Conference.
On 5 August 2024, it was announced that Twickenham Stadium would be renamed Allianz Stadium Twickenham as part of a long-term investment plan by the insurance companyAllianz.[4]
Twickenham is often referred to as "the Home of Rugby".[5] 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 homeSix 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 annualLondon leg of theWorld Rugby Sevens Series, the Cup (championship) final, the third-place match of the annualLondon leg of theWorld Rugby Women's Sevens Series, and the domesticMiddlesex Sevens competition. It is also the venue for thePremiership Rugby final as well asHarlequins'Big Game at Christmas time and an additional annual fixture hosted by Harlequins in late spring.[6]Anglo-Welsh Cup,Heineken Cup andChampions Cup finals have been held here, and the stadium also hostsThe Varsity Match betweenOxford andCambridge (1921–2023), the English schools'Daily Mail Cup Final and theArmy Navy Match, which forms the culmination of the annual Inter-Services Competition.
| Event | Approximate dates |
|---|---|
| England rugby union team home games ofSix Nations Championship | February and March |
| OneEngland women's rugby union team home games ofWomen's Six Nations Championship | March and April |
| Harlequin's Big Summer Kick-off | Early May |
| Army Navy Match | Mid May |
| Premiership Rugby Final | Late May or June |
| England rugby union team games of theAutumn internationals | October and November |
| Harlequin'sBig Game | Late December |
Sold-out Tests againstNew Zealand andSouth Africa atCrystal Palace saw the RFU realise the benefit of owning their own ground. Committee memberWilliam Williams and treasurerWilliam Cail[7] led the way to purchasing a 10.25 acre (4 hectare) market garden in Twickenham in 1907 for£5,500 12s 6d. The first stands were constructed the following year. Before the ground was purchased, it was used to grow, among other vegetables, cabbages, and so Twickenham Stadium is affectionately known as the Cabbage Patch. After further expenditure on roads, the first game, betweenHarlequins v.Richmond, was played on 2 October 1909, and the first international,England v.Wales, on 15 January 1910. At the time of the England-Wales game, the stadium had a maximum capacity of 20,000 spectators. During World War I, the ground was used for cattle, horse and sheep grazing.King George V unveiled a war memorial in 1921.
In 1926, the firstMiddlesex Sevens took place at the ground. In 1927 the firstVarsity Match took place at Twickenham for the first time. On 19 March 1938,BBC Television broadcast the England – Scotland (Calcutta Cup) match from Twickenham, the first time that a rugby match was shown live on television.[8] In 1959, to mark 50 years of the ground, a combined side of England and Wales beatIreland andScotland by 26 points to 17.
Coming into the last match of the 1988 season, England had lost 15 of their previous 23 matches in the Five Nations Championship. The Twickenham crowd had only seen one England try in the previous two years, and at half-time the team were 0–3 down against Ireland. During the second half, England started playing an expansive game many had doubted they were capable of producing. A 0–3 deficit was turned into a 35–3 win, with England scoring six tries. This day also saw the origins of the adoption of the traditional spiritual "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" as a terrace song. Three of England's tries in the match were scored byChris Oti, a black player who had made a reputation for himself that season as speedy left winger. A group of boys from theBenedictine schoolDouai, following a tradition at their school games, sang "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" whenever a try was scored. When Oti scored his second try, amused spectators standing close to the boys joined in, and when Oti scored hishat-trick the song was heard around the ground.[9][10] Since then "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" has been a song to sing at England home games,[11] in the same way thatFields of Athenry is sung inDublin andCwm Rhondda is sung inCardiff.
The United Kingdom, Ireland and France shared the hosting of the1991 Rugby World Cup. Twickenham was used duringpool A England matches. Twickenham was also host of the1991 Rugby World Cup Final in whichAustralia beat England 12–6. For this game, England changed their style of play, opting for the sort of running game that had brought them victory against Ireland in the March 1988 game referred to above. During this match, with the English facing a 12–3 deficit,David Campese reached one-handed for a ball thrown to England winger,Rory Underwood. He dropped it and the ball rolled forward, gifting England a penalty that proved to be the last score of the game. Some have claimed that Campese's action should have been interpreted as a deliberate professional foul, with possible disciplinary action against the Australian player. However, on the same ground in November 1988, Campese had intercepted a similar pass and run the length of the field to score a try.[12]
Some of the Welsh-hosted1999 Rugby World Cup games were taken to Twickenham. These included three of England'spool B matches, the second round playoff when England defeatedFiji 45 points to 24, and both semi-finals, none of which England were involved in, having made their exit in the quarter-finals at the hands ofSouth Africa. Under the reign ofClive Woodward, the stadium became known as 'Fortress Twickenham', as England enjoyed a run of 19 unbeaten home matches from October 1999, ending with defeat against Ireland in 2004. TheIRB Rugby Aid Match was played on 5 March 2005 under the auspices of theInternational Rugby Board (IRB) to raise money for the United NationsWorld Food Programme to support its work helping victims of the2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. The match was between representative sides of the Northern and Southern hemispheres, with the Southern side winning 54–19.
In 2008,Harlequins once again became tenants at Twickenham for selected matches including the annualBig Game fixture usually hosted in late December each year. In 2022, the club launched a second annual fixture at the ground hosted each summer annually known asThe Big Summer Kick Off.[13]
In May 2023 during the 2023 Premiership Rugby Final betweenSale Sharks andSaracens a group of Just Stop Oil protesters came onto the pitch and started to vandalise the surface. Some of the players helped security staff to remove the protestors, who were later arrested.[14]
On 5 August 2024, Twickenham Stadium announced that the stadium would be renamed to the Allianz Stadium Twickenham for 10 years from September 2024, due to a sponsorship agreement withAllianz.[15]
Since the ground's purchase by the RFU in 1907, it has gone through a number of redevelopments. In 1921, a stand was built above the northern terrace, with workshops placed underneath. In 1927, the East Stand was extended, bringing the capacity to 12,000. The south terrace was later extended to enable crowds of 20,000. In 1932, a new West Stand was completed, providing offices for the RFU, who made the ground their home. In 1937,Middlesex County Council approved a scheme submitted by Twickenham Borough Council to widen Rugby Road due to it being inadequate for traffic.
In 1965, the South Terrace was closed due to structural failings. It was found to be cheaper to build a new stand than to repair the existing one; however, planning permission was refused, due to objections from local residents. Permission was eventually granted in 1978. A period of extensive rebuilding took place during the early 1980s, which continued through to the mid-1990s. In 1981, the South Terrace was rebuilt as the South Stand. After being taken down in 1989, an extended North Stand was opened in 1990, having been designed by Husband & Co, and built by Mowlem. Following the 1992 Five Nations, the stadium saw the development of the new East Stand and subsequently the West Stand, to essentially the same design as the North Stand. In 1995, the stadium redevelopment was completed, the ground now accommodating 75,000 people in an all-seater environment. The North, East and West stands were all built byMowlem.[16]Planning permission was sought in 2002 and received in December 2004 for a new South Stand to further raise capacity, with building work commencing in June 2005. As well as increasing the stadium's capacity to 82,000, the redevelopment introduced a four-starMarriott hotel with 156 rooms and six VIP suites with views over the field, a performing arts complex, a health and leisure club, a new rugby shop and a general increase in function space. In July 2005, the old south stand was demolished to make way for the new development. The festivities that were planned to mark this were cancelled in the wake of the7 July terror attacks in the centre of London. The new seating, which had been started byMowlem, was completed byCarillion on 5 November 2006 in time for the England vs New Zealand game of that year'sautumn internationals series, in which England lost in a near-record defeat.[16]
The rugby stadium continued to be developed into 2018 with the upgrading of the east stand. The new stand offers match-day hospitality as well as six floors of event spacing.[17] The east stand was over budget due to additional safety measures put in place to make the redeveloped structure capable of withstanding a bomb attack, and to make it fireproof, with work carried out on the cladding in response to theGrenfell Tower fire. Following the upgrade, the roof is now complete.[18][19]
Twickenham Stadium has hosted Rugby World Cup Matches in 1991, 1999 and 2015, including the finals in 1991 and 2015 when England were the host nation. The Stadium also hosted semi-finals in 1999, including France's famous 43–31 victory over New Zealand. In August 2023, the stadium was confirmed as one of eight host venues for the2025 Women's Rugby World Cup.[20]
| Stage | Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pool A | England | 12–18 | New Zealand |
| Pool A | England | 36–6 | Italy |
| Pool A | England | 37–9 | United States |
| Final | England | 6–12 | Australia |
| Stage | Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pool B | England | 67–7 | Italy |
| Pool B | England | 16–30 | New Zealand |
| Pool B | England | 101–10 | Tonga |
| Quarter-final play-off | England | 45–24 | Fiji |
| Semi-final | Australia | 27–21 | South Africa |
| Semi-final | France | 43–31 | New Zealand |
| Stage | Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pool A | England | 35–11 | Fiji |
| Pool A | England | 25–28 | Wales |
| Pool A | England | 13–33 | Australia |
| Pool A | Australia | 15–6 | Wales |
| Pool D | France | 32–10 | Italy |
| Quarter-final | South Africa | 23–19 | Wales |
| Quarter-final | Australia | 35–34 | Scotland |
| Semi-final | South Africa | 18–20 | New Zealand |
| Semi-final | Argentina | 15–29 | Australia |
| Final | New Zealand | 34–17 | Australia |
The stadium was one of eight host venues for the2025 Women's Rugby World Cup and hosted the final of the competition on 27 September 2025.[20]
| Date | Country | Score | Country | Stage | Attendance | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 September 2025 | France | 26 / 42 | New Zealand | Bronze final | ||
| 27 September 2025 | England | 33 / 13 | Canada | Final | 81,885 | [21] |
Due to the construction delays ofWembley, a number of scheduled events at Wembley were moved to Twickenham.The Rolling Stones'A Bigger Bang Tour concerts were taken to Twickenham.[22] The Stones also played two shows at Twickenham in August and September 2003, the first of which was used as their stadium concert disc for the 2003 DVDFour Flicks. During 2007Genesis played at Twickenham during theirreunion tour.The Police played at the stadium in September 2007 andRod Stewart in June. The usual capacity for concerts is anything up to 55,000, as opposed to the 82,000 for rugby.[23]
R.E.M. performed at Twickenham in August 2008, while New Jersey rockersBon Jovi played two gigs at the stadium in June 2008 as part of theirLost Highway Tour, andIron Maiden played there as part of theirSomewhere Back in Time World Tour on 5 July 2008, along with a full supporting bill which includedAvenged Sevenfold,Within Temptation and Lauren Harris.Lady Gaga performed two sold-out shows at the stadium during herBorn This Way Ball Tour on the 8 and 9 September 2012 with 101,250 people attending for both shows. The first date broke a record for The Fastest Selling-out Stadium Show in UK history when the 50,625 tickets for the first show sold out in 50 seconds.Rihanna performed two shows at the stadium during herDiamonds World Tour on 15 and 16 June 2013 for 95,971 people for both nights.
Since the mid-1950s it has also hosted theJehovah's Witnesses annual convention for the London area. Usually up to 25,000 attend to hear Bible talks.
In 2025, the stadium′s operator asked to increase the number of non-sporting events allowed each year from three to up to fifteen, and to raise the attendance limit for those events to 75,000 people.
It was announced on 3 November 2015 that the RFU and America'sNational Football League had agreed a three-year deal to host at least threeNFL London Games. The deal began in October 2016 and gave the opportunity to host an additional two games over the three-year period of the deal.[24]
On 23 October 2016, theLos Angeles Rams hosted theNew York Giants at Twickenham Stadium. This was the second of three London Games in 2016, with the others being played atWembley.[25] The game was televised live in the UK onBBC Two.
The final two games of the agreement were played in 2017, with matchups announced on 13 December 2016.[26]
| List of NFL London Games at Twickenham Stadium | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Date | UK Broadcaster | Designated Home | Score | Designated Away | Attendance |
| 2016 | 23 October | BBC[27] |  Los Angeles Rams | 10–17 | New York Giants | 74,121 |
| 2017 | 22 October | Sky Sports | Los Angeles Rams | 33–0 | Arizona Cardinals | 73,736[28] |
| 29 October | BBC | Cleveland Browns | 16–33 | Minnesota Vikings | 74,237 | |
Twickenham Stadium was selected as a host venue for the2000 Rugby League World Cup The stadium hosted the opening match between co-hostsEngland and Ashes rivalsAustralia. The game, which was the first ever rugby league match at Twickenham, saw Australia claim a 22–2 victory.
During the reconstruction ofWembley Stadium, Twickenham was one of three venues which hosted theChallenge Cup Final in the years away from Wembley. The2001 Challenge Cup Final sawSt Helens beatBradford Bulls 13–6. St Helens were victorious again in2006 beatingHuddersfield Giants 42–12.
The TV motoring showTop Gear used the pitch for a match of "car rugby". The game was 5-side and used smallerKia Ceeds as backs and largerKia Sportages as forwards.Jeremy Clarkson's team beatJames May's team 17–14. This was played prior to the pitch being resurfaced.[29]
TheWorld 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, includingWilliam Webb Ellis andRichard 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 anEnglish rugby union jersey from the first ever rugby union international in 1871 between England and Scotland, and (until 2005) theWilliam Webb Ellis Cup which was obtained by England at the2003 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.
O is for Oti
| Preceded by | Rugby World Cup final venue 1991 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Heineken Cup final venue 1999–2000 | Succeeded by Parc des Princes Paris |
| Preceded by | Heineken Cup final venue 2003–04 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Heineken Cup final venue 2006–07 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Heineken Cup final venue 2011–12 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | European Rugby Champions Cup final venue 2014–15 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Rugby World Cup final venue 2015 | Succeeded by |
