Anybody know what it is like for hotels around that area, im assuming it is decent obviously with the olympics being there or is it best to tube it in and out ?

Why would we not fill it at full price.

We sold out bigger venues in Old Trafford and sold a hell uv a lot for Wembley.

This is an international not a club game. I know the negatives love to get their punches in early, but this is ridiculous.

I expect it to sell out.

I would predict all three will be sell-outs. Hull definitely will be, we sold it out for the Fiji game in the world cup so obviously will for a new Zealand visit.

Even if Olympic stadium isn't a sell-out I would predict at least 40,000 so it will look really full at least, good spectacle for TV which is always a bonus.

Ive just booked mine already

family room in the closest hotel to the ground (200 metres) Premier Inn which is connected to the nearby westfield centre. £250 two nights 2 adults 2 kids with breakfast


On the venues and dates I say Id be disappointed if we are not getting 95% attendances for all games

In an earlier thread I said the second game needs to be at Wembly and ride on the back of the NFL and RU world cup - Many people slated given wed only likely get 40k


Im actually much happier with this venue, even if we only get 40k it will still look pretty full - I think with a little bit of acute marketing 50k or close to full should be the aim, again ride on the back of what's just happened prior in terms of the - I also think the nostalgia of a new venue will entice some and it being the Olympic Stadium even more

Game 1 the day after the RU final is a good call avoiding any clash - Hull should be a sell out the emotion of the anniversary factor to help

I was a fearing a game could be at leigh or Salford but Wigan is a good call for the last - If its all over by then and the game isn't selling great at least were still gonna hit a decent figure 15 - 20k n if its all on theres no way on earth to see why it wont be a sell out

We should be aiming to 100k total attendance


But overall the RFL in my opinion have got this one right very much looking forward to it

Yeah I'm happy about the venues too.

I should say to those questioning my fitness that that Wireless festival was on an exceptionally hot day: I remember a young fella stood behind me, hefty looking chap in his twenties, just keeled over and went out like a light from heat-stroke. St. Johns Ambulance guys were kept busy all day. IIRC it was Stratford station; suburban train rather than tube, anyway. This isn't likely to be too much of an issue in November.

Anyway I'l plan to go there and to the DW.

Can I just point out - again - that England/GB vs NZ as a standalone fixture has NEVER attracted more than 28,000 in this country, at least not in living memory, and in fact has always seemed to hover between 16-23k. The 67k at Wembley in 2013 was fantastic, but let's not forget that was a double-header riding on the back of a superb World Cup competition.

We've had some good attendances versus Australia as a standalone game, but Australia has always been a bigger draw than NZ.

I truly hope we can fill it, or at least get close, but it's going to take some incredible marketing. It's possible as long as the RFL have a strong social media marketing team and plenty of funds for traditional marketing - they need to build the same levels of interest and excitement as we saw in 2013. If they break 35k they've done a good job.

I think we need to win the match at Hull as the London one then becomes crucial to New Zealand who will have to win to keep any chance of winning the series. Lets get all three grounds sold out and cheer our boys on.

the thing I worry about is how much the onion lot are going to furk up the pitch with their clod hopping.
Olympic park is only 45 minutes for me..will it be afternoon or evening game?

Think you talk some good points. I know people are excited about the Olympic stadium game but you've got to remember it's part of a 3 match series. How many people are realistically going to go to more than one? If you're Yorkshire based you'll opt for the Hull one. If you're based on the wrong side of the Pennines then you'll go to the DW. Whilst they'll be plenty of interest for the London one and the intrigue of watching a game at the Olympic Stadium, you've also got to remember that they'll be more local and cheaper (little travel and no hotel booking) alternatives either weekend of it for many people.

Utter rubbish. Then why book it?
If it's to accommodate rl fans in the south and potential sports fans, then market it properly and fill it. Social media is all well and good, but you are relying on your audience spreading the message.....traditional media is the way to sell this game.
If on the other hand your playing it there in the hope of getting 35,000 then pls I at elland road and save us the pain of swathes of empty seats on tv.
Filling the Olympic......even at a tenner for adults and a fiver for kids is an absolute must.

There's about 60,000 Kiwis in UK, that's a good starting point. Then get clubs to put on coach trips with incentives for the more coach loads they bring. For this London game offer any registered Jnr RL player free ticket with every adult ticket bought. Get some ticket and corporate comps in London running from Aug onwards. Will be tough to get any traditional media with the kick and clap nonsense going on so they are going to have to be very targeted. I would even be tempted to do a parody advert taking the pss out of the quality of a RU test match alongside the ferocity and skill of the last Eng v NZ games.

Given the incredible quality of the last two NZ v England games you would have to be a very poor (monetary and attitude) RL fan to miss any of this series!

For most in West Yorkshire Wigan is closer than Hull and you don't get the same level of grief if you want to wear your own team's shirt

Cronus is right to point out it won't be as easy to sell tickets for this is as it was the World Cup Semi Final double header. And I think if we get 40k we'll have done pretty well.

Having said that I'm still always depressed at how little of a link there is between the clubs and the RFL in terms of selling tickets for these things. You should be able to buy tickets through your amateur club or through your pro club that you go to watch or through any RL organisation in this country. And those clubs should be making a big fuss over it too. For instance Leeds should do offers such as if you buy the ticket through them you can get discounted coach travel with them (maybe even discounted train travel from Leeds?) and that all Leeds fans would sit together etc. Similar offers for amateur clubs where the RFL could liaise with amateur clubs in certain areas and help put on coach travel. Obviously the pro and amateur clubs would get a percentage of the ticket sales that go through them but it wouldn't need to be much of a percentage to incentivise the clubs to put a lot more effort into it than they currently do. Unfortunately most clubs efforts seem to be limited to an article on their website every so often and, if you're lucky, a couple of coaches.

Which is why I mentioned a strong social media team and plenty of funds for traditional marketing. If you want to market extensively in London you'd better have very, very deep pockets.

Social media can be fantastic, however you're hitting your existing audience for the most. Raising the profile of the game with a new audience is much more difficult, and expensive.

No, the hope is to fill it, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't understand the challenges. I actually think 40k can be achieved, but it's gonna take some work.

I don't include the 2013 fixture for obvious reasons. A double-header riding on the emotion of a fantastic World Cup. A one-off. The 2nd game of a Eng-NZ series simply does not have that draw. It's not a decider for a start. Perhaps if we were playing Australia in an Ashes series, but we're not and NZ standalone has never been a massive draw.

In the meantime let's look at attendances for Eng/GB vs NZ, which - even in the heartlands - hover around 16-24k on average. So straight away you're talking roughly a 100% growth in attendance to achieve 40k, at a venue 200 miles from most heartland fans, who also have the option of a game or two on much more local soil, at much less expense.

Then let's look at previous standalone London attendances29 Oct 05, Loftus Road
6 Nov 04, Galpharm Stadium23 Nov 98, Vicarage Rd
7 Nov 98, Reebok StadiumAverage[/size