RFU chiefs considered a move to Midlands

TWICKENHAM chiefs considered moving the home of rugby to the Midlands last year before deciding to stay put and revamp the stadium.

- ADAM HATHAWAY

The RFU had three proposals on the table last spring, one of which was a shift to a greenfield site near Birmingham.

It recently came to light that another proposal was to sell Twickenham and buy a 50 per cent stake in Wembley Stadium which was part of a radical ‘leave’ option.

But RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney has revealed the union also pondered moving from south-west London to the middle of England before plumping to stay and renovate the current ground.

Work on improving facilities at HQ will not start until 2027 when there are no autumn internationals because of the World Cup in Australia.

“We looked at a range of different options,” said Sweeney. “There was the merger with Wembley option which was a conversation and there was a move somewhere else to a green field site which might have had better access for the whole of the country. It was in the Birmingham area and they were quite keen to work with us.