Saracens and Harlequins embracing athletics and hockey smart move for rugby
Despite this weekend appearing to be the first in an eternity without top-flight rugby, the reality is that across England we have never had so little of it.
Take Harlequins or Saracens, the two Prem Rugby clubs in London, and recent fixture announcements lay bare the underlying reason as to why so many teams make such a heavy loss in this sport.
Assuming teams do not make the post-season, clubs play just nine home fixtures in the Prem. Add in the four matches as part of the Prem Rugby Cup and the two Investec Champions Cup or EPCR Challenge Cup fixtures and teams host just 15 matches a year at home.
That’s just 15 days out of 365 that a team can monetise the pitch and their season ticket holders. And it is a worrying stat like that that points to some of rugby’s woes.
Furthermore, if changes are made to the European competitions to, rightly, make them more elite then a number of clubs will see their 15 matches become 13.
For clubs like Bristol Bears, who share their Ashton Gate stadium with sibling football club Bristol City, the hit is less severe. But for the teams who are the primary tenant in their stadium – and who own it, rather than rent it on an ad hoc basis – it can be a struggle.
Rugby sweating assets
It is why the moves of Saracens – at the Stone X stadium – and Harlequins – with their Stoop – should be applauded for the innovative approach to sport at their respective arenas. Many clubs are looking to gigs and conferences but these two are attracting fresh sports into the mix.
Having seen a deal with the London Broncos to host a Challenge Cup match at the Stoop fall through due to the opposition team going into administration, Quins have since signed a deal to see field hockey return to the stadium in 2027.
The club have done this before, and will host the EuroHockey 2027 Championships in the period where their pitch would usually have been dug up.
And for Saracens, they’ll have a new tenant at the Stone X this year: Alexis Ohanian, Reddit co-founder and husband of Serena Williams.
His all-women athletics competition Athlos will head to north London with a London leg of the league that is usually based out of New York.
This kind of innovation for both Saracens and Harlequins is great, and signals that teams are looking away from just rugby throughout the year. Star examples of this in sport are Fulham and Surrey’s Oval – and maybe it is no coincidence that these, too, are in the capital.
Let’s hope it can help them cut their losses going forward.
Ollie Phillips is the founder of Optimist Performance and part of a LosseHeadz world record attempt for the longest rugby sevens match. Follow Ollie @OlliePhillips11 and donate online