England Rugby 2015 Granted Venue Extension

England Rugby 2015 has been awarded an extension to finalise its preferred venues for the World Cup, following uncertainty of the availability of the Olympic Stadium.

The competition organisers had been expected to present a final list of venues to the International Rugby Board at a Rugby World Cup Limited board meeting on Friday. 

However, the future of London’s Olympic Stadium moved further from a quick resolution after Leyton Orient chairman Barry Hearn revealed earlier this month that the League One football club would mount a legal challenge against the result of the bidding process for the venue.

In December, West Ham United was confirmed as the preferred bidder for the Olympic Stadium with the Premier League side reportedly close to reaching a final agreement with the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), but the announcement from Orient raised further question marks over the process. 

England Rugby 2015 is believed to be keen to involve the Olympic Stadium in its plans for the World Cup and is understood to have been handed an extension of around a month to finalise its venue plans.

The Olympic Stadium and Wembley Stadium were among 17 candidate venues named in October’s venue long list, which will be cut down to a final 12 stadia. 

Only three of the original list – Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium, Kingsholm in Gloucester and Twickenham Stadium in London – are regularly used for rugby union matches, while the majority of venues are homes of football clubs in the English Premier League or second-tier Championship. 

The other venues to be shortlisted were: Villa Park (Birmingham), Brighton Community Stadium (Brighton), Ashton Gate (Bristol), Coventry Stadium (Coventry), Pride Park (Derby), Elland Road (Leeds), Leicester City Stadium (Leicester), Old Trafford (Manchester), Stadium:mk (Milton Keynes), St James’ Park (Newcastle), St Mary’s Stadium (Southampton) and Stadium of Light (Sunderland). 

Meanwhile, Ashton Gate was recently replaced by Sandy Park, home of Premiership Rugby club Exeter Chiefs.