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Egg chasers would welcome Chelsea at Twickenham

The RFU would be open to the lucrative prospect of hosting Chelsea at Twickenham during the redevelopment of Stamford Bridge but expects that Richmond upon Thames borough council would block the move.

Chelsea will be in the market for a temporary home for up to seven years if they choose to build a new 60,000-capacity stadium on the site of Stamford Bridge. The club’s alternative option, to build a stadium in Earl’s Court, would not require a groundshare arrangement.

If Chelsea were to rebuild Stamford Bridge, they would have to groundshare with Premier League rivals, hire out Wembley as Tottenham Hotspur did, or revive interest in playing at Twickenham.

Chelsea first made a request to play at the home of rugby in 2014. The RFU was interested at the time but the proposal never got off the ground.   Quite a lot of Chelsea's support is within easy reach of south-west London.

The RFU, which made record losses last year and is struggling to break even over its four-year cycle, is desperate to increase its revenue from non-rugby events to fund a £650million redevelopment of Twickenham.

Tottenham paid the FA £15million a year to rent Wembley at a reduced capacity between 2017 and 2019 while the club’s new stadium was being built.

Staging football at Twickenham would be permitted within the RFU’s event licence — although it would need support from the council because of additional transport and policing implications.

The RFU has not received any approach from Chelsea. The club’s owners, Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, have not yet reached an agreement over whether Chelsea should pursue the Stamford Bridge or Earl’s Court option.

Bill Sweeney, RFU chief executive,  said the council understands the RFU’s position and that a local residents’ survey revealed 75 per cent of people were in favour of more non-rugby events being staged at Twickenham. However, the council is anxious about football.

“There have been conversations previously about possible Premier League clubs coming here,” Sweeney said. “Richmond council is more concerned about that. I just think in terms of impact on local residents, numbers of fans and so on they’re a little bit more sensitive. It may depend on which club it is.”

 

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