Anfield World Cup games to move to Wigan

[Mr Frisky]

42 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

London should absolutely be considered as a replacement. Coventry maybe too.

England are now playing in Bolton and most likely Wigan in the tournament now, which feels a bit more lowkey than the vibe they will want to show.

Do you not know what the conditions are for the government funding?

[Sports Prophet]

Am I the only one that really enjoyed watching RL at City of Manchester Stadium? 

For all its failings, Anfield is a marquee venue. Wigan simply does not have the same lustre.

[Tommygilf]

28 minutes ago, Damien said:

I said the North because that is what the Northern powerhouse funding was dependent on a minimum number of games in the North. This is what the original schedule was created with in mind. Therefore if Anfield is gone then it needs to be replaced by games in the North.

Given there is literally 2 games outside the North I don't think even the powerhouse funding was that stringent, but regardless it does still strike me as a downgrade.

England shouldn't really be playing in a less than 30k capacity ground for a home world cup - especially when so many games are in the heartlands anyway.

[Tommygilf]

12 minutes ago, Mr Frisky said:

Do you not know what the conditions are for the government funding?

I believe it was 80% as supported by this article: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/northern-powerhouse-at-the-heart-of-rugby-league-world-cup-2021

29 out of 31 is significantly more than that. And no matter how you paint it, another game to the Heartlands (which are already pretty saturated with fixtures for this tournament) in a relatively small stadium for the premium team in the tournament is a downgrade sadly. 

[Padge]

21 minutes ago, del capo said:

Yes  80% of funding had to be spent up North.

Padge whilst WIgan RL  will make nothing directly I'm sure the Arena will sell a few pints and as you say will improve profile. The game is likely to be worth 500K + to the local economy

Even the Bahreinis ( DW'S new soccer owners ) may take notice that there is another sport in town after all.....and one that can bring a World Cup to them.......

 

The Bahreinis will have negotiated this with the RFL so should already be well aware of what the RL club can bring. Wigan RL have no reason to be a party involved in the deal as it is nothing to do with them. They may attempt to get a spin-off by using the arena but that will still be small in comparison to having a large slice of the stadium takings.

 

[Padge]

18 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

Given there is literally 2 games outside the North I don't think even the powerhouse funding was that stringent, but regardless it does still strike me as a downgrade.

England shouldn't really be playing in a less than 30k capacity ground for a home world cup - especially when so many games are in the heartlands anyway.

Who said England are playing there, it is a venue with fixtures to be arranged.

[Tommygilf]

Just now, Padge said:

Who said England are playing there, it is a venue with fixtures to be arranged.

Anfield was set to be the venue England's quarter Final (so long as we qualified for the quarters) regardless of the draw. Emirates likewise for the Semi final.

Our 4 quarter final venues are now Wigan, Bolton, Huddersfield and Hull. Wigan are still the second largest venue in that list and most likely will get the England game - them or Bolton. Odd that a venue with less than half the capacity has been chosen as the alternative.

[Big Picture]

1 hour ago, Tommygilf said:

I believe it was 80% as supported by this article: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/northern-powerhouse-at-the-heart-of-rugby-league-world-cup-2021

29 out of 31 is significantly more than that. And no matter how you paint it, another game to the Heartlands (which are already pretty saturated with fixtures for this tournament) in a relatively small stadium for the premium team in the tournament is a downgrade sadly. 

True, 80% of 31 would be 25.  They could have six matches outside the North and still hit the required 80%.

[briggyq]

The new main stand is excellent but I don’t know Anfield doesn’t settle into rugby league as old Trafford and st. James park do,oh well can’t be helped

[Tommygilf]

10 minutes ago, Big Picture said:

True, 80% of 31 would be 25.  They could have siz matches outside the North and still hit the required 80%.

England's quarter Final (and double header with the Women's game) should be a premium event in a premium Venue. It could also be a growth opportunity if so desired. Anfield was an attempt at those things. Wigan is the opposite sadly.

[GUBRATS]

4 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

England's quarter Final (and double header with the Women's game) should be a premium event in a premium Venue. It could also be a growth opportunity if so desired. Anfield was an attempt at those things. Wigan is the opposite sadly.

For whatever reason Anfield is no longer available , end of , so where do you suggest they ask what is available ?

[Cumbrian Fanatic]

We had tickets to the Anfield quarter final and, while not too disappointed it is not now being used, I'd have thought the aim for the England quarter final would have been to try and get a crowd of 40000. If the only change at the q/f change is Anfield for Wigan then I'd have thought that that would be the England game due to the transfer of tickets. A little underwhelming, my preference would have been the Etihad, but none of us know which stadiums are available next November, so I'll still go and I'll still enjoy it - assuming England win

[Tommygilf]

10 hours ago, GUBRATS said:

For whatever reason Anfield is no longer available , end of , so where do you suggest they ask what is available ?

If they were looking at 50k at Anfield then it depends where they want to go.

Manchester City is an excellent facility and keeps the marquee fixture in the North West at an elite stadium that has successfully hosted RL in the past.

In Yorkshire, Bramall Lane and Elland Road are due to host games the weeks before and after, which probably puts them out of the question. Hull and Huddersfield are already hosting quarter final fixtures too.

London and Coventry strike me as other obvious choices. London has a track record of good crowds for England fixtures and from an organisation perspective would allow England 2 weeks with no travel between their last group game and the semi final. It would mean that England are spread about a bit more. There's also obviously a greater choice of potential venues too.

Coventry on the other hand only has a single (if major) fixture and is 1 of only two existing venues outside the North of England. Improving access to the England team to those without elite RL on their doorstep already seems logical enough.

In all seriousness Goodison Park has a pitch the same size as Anfield's and at just shy of 40k capacity wouldn't result in a major fall in ticket sales.

[Odsal Outlaw]

It’s a shame to lose an iconic venue, but Liverpool and more specifically Anfield as a destination is underwhelming. Awful area and having sat in the new stand for the England v NZ game it’s awful, no leg room. Although I was impressed with the pints that filled up from the bottom of the plastic cup!

I would have like to have seen another game sent to London, but it still looks a great tournament!

[JohnM]

On 13/11/2021 at 11:00, RigbyLuger said:

I was looking forward to taking family to Anfield. Wigan ain't quite the same.

True. Its superior.

[JohnM]

16 hours ago, DoubleD said:

The difference is that with Wigan we’re effectively fishing in the same pond, where there are already lots of matches. It’s potentially oversaturated now. With Anfield, whilst I dislike the stadium for the reasons already stated, it did add prestige and is targeting a different market, one which we will now miss out on potentially 

I don't agree its targetting a different market and in any case it's just 22 miles and about a 40 minute drive from the DW to Anfield.  

[JohnM]

13 hours ago, Tommygilf said:

London should absolutely be considered as a replacement. Coventry maybe too.

England are now playing in Bolton and most likely Wigan in the tournament now, which feels a bit more lowkey than the vibe they will want to show.

Equally, they are trying to generate some profit. So, nor more London or Coventry. 

[Tommygilf]

1 minute ago, JohnM said:

I don't agree its targetting a different market and in any case it's just 22 miles and about a 40 minute drive from the DW to Anfield.  

People will make the effort to go to Liverpool. Yes Anfield as a stadium isn't perfect and the area isn't great, but the city is fab and for a weekend with a Quarter final in its an attractive prospect for people from across the country to travel to. Its a destination as well as a venue.

Wigan is far less so. Which is why its less than half the capacity (indicating they are expecting to sell half as many tickets).

[JohnM]

I certainly would not go to Anfield again. Imagine the shame if someone recognised me! 

[Tommygilf]

1 minute ago, JohnM said:

Equally, they are trying to generate some profit. So, nor more London or Coventry. 

London consistently provides our biggest attendances for Internationals (alongside Leeds). 

The world cup originally stated they wanted 1,000,000 attendees. We're not going to get that if our largest QF venues are 25-28k capacity.

Anyway, who said Wigan would be profitable?

[Tommygilf]

31 games in the mens World Cup.

29/31 in the North of England. 

25/31 in historic counties of Yorkshire, Lancashire and Cheshire.

8/31 games in stadiums with capacities greater than 26k. That's just 2 more than in 2013 (though 4 of those were double headers for the opener and semi finals at 75k capacity Cardiff and 90k capacity Wembley).

The World Cup is doing a lot right and has been one of the only positives in RL for the past few years. I do worry that there are too many "safe" venue choices, so much so that they risk crowding eachother to the extent that they stop being "safe" choices. I'd have hoped that stadiums have relatively equivalent alternatives - Workington to Newcastle was an example of that; Liverpool to Wigan isn't.

[Tommygilf]

On 13/11/2021 at 12:39, Davo5 said:

Anfield a top tier venue

I found it uncomfortable personally, but it undeniably carries a prestige value and it was a critical part of the "maximising big games" strategy the World Cup was going with.

[Davo5]

14 minutes ago, Tommygilf said:

I found it uncomfortable personally, but it undeniably carries a prestige value and it was a critical part of the "maximising big games" strategy the World Cup was going with.

The fact we can’t have a Test Match on a full sized pitch is embarrassing,the area is a slum & transport links back into the city are very poor,it’s hardly a devastating loss to the tournament.

[Chris22]

I know comparing us to RU may not be wise but I'm going to do it anyway! When England hosted the union WC in 2015, the lowest crowd for a quarter final was 71,000.

Here is a map of venues for the RU World Cup in 2015 and then ours in 2021 (at present).

   

I know we need the majority of venues in the north but think we could have had a little more ambition (we seem to have contracted in terms of spread since 2013). If you are in large swathes of the country you are hundreds of miles from being able to attend a match, limiting its accessibility.

28 towns and cities made a bid to most a match (40 separate venues), the most interest we have ever had. I agree that the 80% target of matches in the north was sensible and also essential to secure funding, but feel 94% (as we currently have) is too high.

One more match in an unexpected location does not seem to be too great of a risk, especially at the QF stage, which doesn't have the greatest appeal in the heartlands, but may have a greater appeal to a casual audience.

[Scubby]

2 minutes ago, Chris22 said:

I know comparing us to RU may not be wise but I'm going to do it anyway! When England hosted the union WC in 2015, the lowest crowd for a quarter final was 71,000.

Here is a map of venues for the RU World Cup in 2015 and then ours in 2021 (at present).

   

I know we need the majority of venues in the north but think we could have had a little more ambition (we seem to have contracted in terms of spread since 2013). If you are in large swathes of the country you are hundreds of miles from being able to attend a match, limiting its accessibility.

28 towns and cities made a bid to most a match (40 separate venues), the most interest we have ever had. I agree that the 80% target of matches in the north was sensible and also essential to secure funding, but feel 94% (as we currently have) is too high.

One more match in an unexpected location does not seem to be too great of a risk, especially at the QF stage, which doesn't have the greatest appeal in the heartlands, but may have a greater appeal to a casual audience.

 

The Government money was part of the Northern Powerhouse initiative so I think on this occasion there were some constraints. Hence, why no games in Wales or France for example.