Ricoh Arena to host major international sporting fixtures

INTERNATIONAL rugby league is returning to the Midlands after Coventry’s Ricoh Arena was selected to host a double header in this autumn’s Four Nations series.
England will play Scotland before world champions Australia take on Four Nations holders New Zealand on Saturday, November 5.
Villa Park hosted the first-ever Australian touring team in 1909, when the Northern Union side won 6-5 to clinch a series win.
The Ricoh Arena, which is owned by rugby union club Wasps, will host its first rugby league match next month, as League One side Coventry playing Keighley Cougars on May 8.

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David Armstrong, group chief executive officer of Wasps, said: “We have a world-class stadium with fantastic facilities and hosting two high-profile games of this nature will have the added bonus of encouraging more people to have a go at the sport.
“Fans from across the world will be heading to the Ricoh Arena to the double-header which means there will be another positive economic spin-off for the region as well as the opportunity to raise the profile of the Midlands.
“Hosting the Four Nations sits proudly alongside the major music events we have on the horizon with MTV Crashes Coventry, Rihanna and Bruce Springsteen and the E Band also taking centre stage in the stadium bowl which will further put Wasps, the Ricoh Arena and the city of Coventry on the map internationally and nationally.”

Six different venues across the country will be used during this year’s tournament, including the Olympic Park in London. The final will be played at Anfield on November 20.

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