European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR) has announced that Dublin’s Aviva Stadium will replace Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as the host of its Champions Cup and Challenge Cup finals in 2023.
Aviva Stadium will host the matches on May 19 and May 20, with tickets to go on sale tomorrow (Friday).
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium had been scheduled to host the matches but EPCR said that the late conclusion to the 2022-23 Premier League season, coupled with the impact of the 2023 Rugby World Cup on the EPCR calendar, has forced a venue switch.
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium was originally due to stage the finals in 2021 before seeing its hosting rights pushed to 2022 after the COVID-19 pandemic forced the 2020 finals to be removed from Marseille’s Orange Vélodrome.
The Vélodrome was instead awarded hosting rights to the 2021 finals but the matches ultimately ended up being played at London’s Twickenham Stadium due to ongoing restrictions in France. As a result, the Vélodrome’s matches were pushed back to 2022 and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium’s games were moved to 2023.
While the Vélodrome will finally stage the finals later this month, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will have to wait for its chance to host. Dominic McKay, EPCR chairman, said the organisation is happy to continue working with Tottenham so the stadium can stage the finals “soon”.
Aviva Stadium has hosted the Champions Cup final three times, most recently in 2013. The stadium has been awarded rights to next year’s finals following extensive discussions with Dublin City Council and the Irish Rugby Football Union.
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will host the final of rugby league’s Challenge Cup on May 28. The stadium, which opened in 2019, also hosts annual NFL games and last year the venue staged its first boxing match as Anthony Joshua was defeated by Oleksandr Usyk.
Image: EPCR
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