Sunwolves Super Rugby Stadium

Prince Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium

Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium (also called Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium) is located in the the Aoyama district of central Tokyo is the spiritual home of Japanese rugby union and the headquarters of the Japan Rugby Football Union.

The stadium currently can accommodate 27,188 spectators, but only part of the stands are covered. A large electronic scoreboard was added to the grounds as a step toward modernization before the fifth Rugby World Cup in 2003.

On April 19, 2007, it was announced that the stadium was to be equipped with lights for night games by the end of July, to assist with the RWC 2015 bid. The first rugby game under lights was Japan v Asian Barbarians in August 2007, the send-off for Japan going to RWC 2007.

Since then it has been used for the first Top League game of the 2007’8 season between Suntory Sungoliath and Toshiba Brave Lupus, also played under lights and won 10’3 by the former on October 26, 2008.

Originally completed in 1947, it was at first called Tokyo Rugby Stadium. In 1953 the name was changed to Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium. The stadium also served as a venue for football matches in the 1964 Summer Olympics.

The name Chichibunomiya commemorates the sporting prince, Prince Chichibu, who was not a rugby union player but was passionately fond of the sport and died in 1953. His statue is in the stadium.

On February 3, 2008, snow prevented two Top League games being played in the 13th and final round of the fifth season. They were postponed to February 9.

From 2012 through 2015, the stadium hosted the Japan Sevens, a newly created event on the circuit for men’s national rugby sevens teams now known as the World Rugby Sevens Series.

When inaugurated, the tournament was the seventh on the circuit schedule, and was held in late March/early April. After the 2014’15 series, Japan was removed from the schedule in favor of a return to former series host Singapore.

Singapore National Stadium, Singapore

The National Stadium is a stadium replacing the old stadium in Kallang, Singapore and opened on 30 June 2014.

Located in Kallang, Singapore, the National Stadium is a multi-purpose arena used mostly for football matches featuring a dome and retractable roof. It is the only stadium in the world custom designed to host football, rugby, cricket and athletics events. With a mechanised and automated retractable seating configurations on the lowest tier, the arena can also host concerts, cultural and other entertainment purposes at any time. It takes approximately 48 hours to reconfigure seating arrangements to suit an upcoming event.

The stadium has a maximum seating capacity of 55,000 for football and rugby, 52,000 for cricket and 50,000 spectators for athletics events.

The arena is located at the site of the former National Stadium, which was closed in 2007 and demolished in 2010.

The stadium is a part of the new multi-purpose Singapore Sports Hub complex which comprises the OCBC Aquatic Centre, the multi-purpose OCBC Arena, the Singapore Sports Museum, the Sports Hub library, the Kallang Wave shopping mall and the current Singapore Indoor Stadium, as well as a Water Sports Centre at the adjacent Kallang Basin.

The Singapore national football team makes a return home to the National Stadium for the first time since the demolition of the old stadium in 2010, after spending 4 years at the Jalan Besar Stadium and will play future international matches there and hosting the National Day Parade in 2016.

It is also, since September 2015, the final stop for the Graduation and Passing Out Parades of the Basic Military Training Centre of the Singapore Armed Forces, given the rising numbers of Singaporeans interested in the BMTC.

The area for the parade alternates between it and The Float at Marina Bay, where it has been held since 2010.

Source – Wikipedia