Poor results and drab displays have created disillusionment among the Twickenham faithful, with half-empty stands expected this weekend
England’s World Cup send-off is set to be played in front of a half empty Twickenham in a mark of the supporter base’s growing disillusionment.
Telegraph Sport understands that around 40,000 tickets have been sold for the final warm-up match against Fiji on Saturday with the upper deck of Twickenham being blocked off. The Rugby Football Union remain hopeful that a further five days of ticket sales may take the attendance to 50,000 with seats available for £35 for adults and £10 for children.
Meanwhile New Zealand’s match against South Africa on Friday night at Twickenham is expected to be a sell out with fewer than 100 seats remaining despite tickets being nearly double the price of England’s match against Twickenham, which has a capacity of 82,000. It will also mark the first time the England women’s side have attracted a bigger attendance than the men in the same calendar year, having brought 58,498 into Twickenham in April for their Six Nations match against France.
That will set alarming bells ringing within the upper echelons of the RFU. Slow ticket sales for the 2023 Six Nations were a factor behind Eddie Jones’s defenestration as England head coach last year. Much of the RFU’s business model is built upon hosting matches at a sold-out Twickenham, the single biggest cash cow within world rugby, and will be central to the projections of the new Professional Game Partnership being drawn up with Premiership Rugby.