Kingsholm Stadium
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Exterior view, November 2016 | |
![]() Interactive map of Kingsholm Stadium | |
| Location | Gloucester, England |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 51°52′18″N 2°14′34″W / 51.87167°N 2.24278°W |
| Public transit | |
| Owner | Gloucester Rugby |
| Capacity | 16,115 (12,000 Concerts) |
| Surface | Artificial |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1891 |
| Opened | 1891 |
| Tenants | |
| Gloucester Rugby Gloucester–Hartpury | |
| Website | |
| kingsholmstadium.co.uk | |
Kingsholm Stadium is a rugby union stadium located in the Kingsholm area of Gloucester, England, and is the home stadium of Gloucester Rugby. The stadium has a capacity of 16,115. It is sometimes nicknamed 'Castle Grim', after the estate where the stadium is built. The new main grandstand, opened in 2007, is an all-seated 7,500 capacity stand along the south touchline. It is currently sponsored by Malvern Tyres.
Kingsholm was used as a home stadium for England before they settled at Twickenham and also hosted New Zealand versus United States for a pool match in the 1991 Rugby World Cup.
In common with many grounds of English professional rugby union clubs, Kingsholm features several terraced standing areas. One such area is the North Stand, which runs the whole length of the pitch, holds around 3,000 people and is known for sponsorship reasons as 'The Compeed Shed'. The Shed is known within rugby union for its low roof and proximity to the pitch which enhances the atmosphere created by the home supporters. The West Stand terrace holds around 1,615 spectators and has a row of hospitality boxes located above. It is sponsored by Allstone Speedy Skips.
The East Stand is an all-seater stand located directly on Kingsholm Road. It holds around 3,000 fans. It is sponsored by Stowford Press.



A proposal by the then Gloucester Football Club to acquire the grounds where Kingsholm Stadium is built was first put together in July 1891.[2] The purchase was made and the first match took place in October 1891.[3] A pavilion was built in 1892, initially with seating capacity for 424 spectators.[2][4] A wooden stand was added in 1923. In September 1933, a fire destroyed this stand; a larger replacement was completed before the end of the year in its place.[5] The original pavilion was demolished in 1934 and, in its place, was built the stand that is today known as The Shed.[2]
International matches
In May 2008, the Barbarian F.C. and Ireland national rugby union team played a match at Kingsholm. Kingsholm has hosted multiple other international matches, including one pool game in the 1991 Rugby World Cup and four pool games in the 2015 Rugby World Cup,[6] hosting Tonga, Georgia, Scotland, Argentina, the United States and Japan.
| List of men's and women's international rugby union matches at Kingsholm Stadium | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Country | Score | Country | Use |
| 6 January 1900 | England |
3–13 | 1900 Home Nations Championship | |
| 8 October 1991 | New Zealand |
46–6 | 1991 Rugby World Cup | |
| 27 May 2008 | Ireland |
39–14 | Barbarians | Uncapped match |
| 12 June 2011 | England Saxons | 41–14 | Tonga |
Churchill Cup |
| 15 November 2014 | Tonga |
40–12 | 2014 End-of-year test | |
| 5 September 2015 | Japan |
13–10 | World-cup warm up game[7] | |
| 19 September 2015 | Georgia |
17–10 | 2015 Rugby World Cup | |
| 23 September 2015 | Scotland |
45–10 | ||
| 25 September 2015 | Argentina |
54–9 | ||
| 11 October 2015 | United States |
18–28 | ||
| 9 April 2022 | England |
58–5 | 2022 Women's Six Nations Championship | |
| 7 September 2024 | England |
2024 WXV warm up game | ||
Kingsholm was also one of the venues for the 2000 Rugby League World Cup where, on 29 October, it hosted the group 2 game between New Zealand and Lebanon. The New Zealand team included future rugby union converts and Gloucester Rugby players, Henry Paul and Lesley Vainikolo.

Concerts
Kingsholm regularly hosts pop concerts, generally when the season has ended. The stadium has hosted acts ranging from Tom Jones, McFly, Ronan Keating and The Wanted. In 2015 it hosted Madness and Elton John 2016 Jess Glynne and Lionel Richie and in 2017 Little Mix.[8]
Football
Kingsholm Stadium hosted several football matches for Gloucester City A.F.C. in the 1910s. Since the football club's 3rd major flooding in 17 years in 2007 at Meadow Park and subsequent exile from the city, Kingsholm had been discussed as both a temporary and permanent solution but no mutual agreement was found. Further flooding occurred at the stadium in 2017.[9]

