RUGBY LEAGUE fans have been voting for where they want to see the first Ashes Test between England and Australia to be played next year.
With Australia deciding to tour the UK in 2025 instead of England visiting Down Under, there has been a great debate about which three venues could be chosen to host the kangaroos.
Of course, the usual suspects such as Leeds United’s Elland Road and Manchester United’s Old Trafford have all come into the chat, with the Daily Mail reporting that Everton’s new football venue – which is yet to have been finished – is under ‘serious consideration’ to host one of the fixtures.
Built on the River Mersey at Bramley-Moore Dock, the Everton Stadium will hold just under 53,000 spectators which, on first glance, may well be quite ambitious with regards to aims to fill it.
The Daily Mail has also reported that one Ashes fixture will be hosted in London – with Wembley Stadium the favourite – one in Yorkshire with Leeds and Hull set to battle it out and then one in the north west.
The stadium will hopefully be finalised by the end of this year so Everton can move into their permanent home for next season.
Our readers at League Express have also been voting for their favoured venue, answering this question: “Given that Australia will be coming next year to play an Ashes series against England, where would you like to see the first Test played, assuming that a capacity of at least 35,000 will be required?”
And the results are now in – with Newcastle United’s St James’ Park the winner:
St James’ Park, Newcastle – 25.06%
Etihad Stadium, Manchester – 21.51%
Elland Road, Leeds – 21.29%
Everton Stadium, Liverpool – 18.63%
Wembley Stadium, London – 13.53%
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