Twickenham is to be renamed Allianz Stadium, after the RFU announced a naming-rights deal for the home of English rugby.
The RFU declined to confirm how much the agreement is worth, but a deal with the German financial services giant is said to have been struck for more than £100million.
It has been reported by the Daily Mail that Allianz will pay more than £10m annually for at least 10 years.
Twickenham was built in 1907 and has hosted England Tests since 1909. The move has angered traditionalists, but the RFU insist the deal will be “transformative” for the game.
RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney said: “This partnership will support us in moving the game in a direction which serves all rugby, from minis to the elites, from club coaches to our national coaches and everything in between.
“This is an opportunity to celebrate our stadium’s proud legacy while developing it for the future. Over the coming years, the RFU and Allianz will work together to enhance visitor experiences and provide fans and the local community with the best possible match day and event experiences.”
The move to rename Twickenham comes after the RFU reported a loss of £6.3m in their accounts for the 2022-23 financial year. The RFU said last year they were operating in a “very difficult financial environment”, a fact underlined by the collapse of Wasps, Worcester and London Irish during the same season.
The RFU have been exploring ways of increasing income, as they are heavily reliant on revenue from ticket sales and hospitality. TV money is a much smaller percentage of earnings compared with football.
All the other home nations have naming rights deals for their stadiums, including Wales’s Principality Stadium, Ireland’s Aviva Stadium and Scottish Gas Murrayfield.
The first match at the renamed stadium will be the England Women’s clash with New Zealand on September 14.
