Ravenhill Stadium
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Ravenhill Stadium (known as the Kingspan Stadium for sponsorship reasons until June 2025) is a rugby
stadium A stadium (: stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage completely or partially surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand or sit ...
located in
Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
,
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
. It is the home of
Ulster Rugby Ulster Rugby is one of the four professional provincial rugby union teams from the island of Ireland. They compete in the Irish regional pool of the United Rugby Championship and in the European Rugby Champions Cup, each of which they have won ...
. With the opening of a new stand for the 2014 Heineken Cup quarter-final against
Saracens file:Erhard Reuwich Sarazenen 1486.png, upright 1.5, Late 15th-century History of Germany, German woodcut depicting Saracens ''Saracen'' ( ) was a term used both in Greek language, Greek and Latin writings between the 5th and 15th centuries to ...
on 5 April 2014, the capacity of the stadium is now 18,196. The stadium is owned by the
Irish Rugby Football Union The Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) () is the body managing rugby union in the island of Ireland (both Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland). The IRFU has its head office at 10/12 Lansdowne Road and home ground at Aviva Stadium, where a ...
.


History

Ravenhill Stadium opened in 1923. It features an ornate arch at the entrance that was erected as a war memorial for those players killed in
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
and
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Prior to 1923, both Ulster and Ireland played games at the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society grounds in Belfast. Ravenhill has been the annual venue for the Ulster Schools Cup final since 1924, which is traditionally contested on
St Patrick's Day Saint Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick (), is a religious and cultural holiday held on 17 March, the traditional death date of Saint Patrick (), the foremost patron saint of Ireland. Saint Patrick's Day was made an official Chris ...
. The stadium is traditionally the venue for the
Ulster Towns Cup The Ulster Towns Cup is a rugby union competition organized by the Ulster Rugby, Ulster branch of the Irish Rugby Football Union. It is confined to teams outside of Belfast. Since the resumption of play after World War II, where a town is represen ...
, played on
Easter Monday Easter Monday is the second day of Eastertide and a public holiday in more than 50 predominantly Christian countries. In Western Christianity it marks the second day of the Octave of Easter; in Eastern Christianity it marks the second day of Br ...
. Ravenhill has hosted 18 international matches, including pool games in both the
1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...
and
1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...
Rugby World Cups. The most recent
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
international played at the stadium was on 24 August 2007 against Italy in a warm-up match for the 2007 Rugby World Cup. Prior to that match, Scotland was the last visitor in the 1954 Five Nations Championship. Ravenhill also hosted the 2007 Under 19 Rugby World Championship final in which New Zealand defeated South Africa. Ravenhill hosted memorable Ulster games in the
Heineken Cup The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Investec Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pre ...
. Ulster beat
Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...
15–13 at Ravenhill in the quarter-finals of the 1998–99 Heineken Cup. Ravenhill then hosted the 1998–99 Heineken Cup semi-final in which Ulster defeated
Stade Français Stade Français Paris (known commonly as Stade Français, ) is a French professional rugby union club based in the 16th arrondissement of Paris. The club plays in the Top 14 domestic league in France and is one of the most successful French ...
33–27. The most memorable moment in that game was when out half David Humphreys ran from the Ulster 10-metre line to score a try. On 5 June 2014, Ulster signed a 10-year contract with the Kingspan Group for the naming rights to Ravenhill, meaning that the stadium will be known as the Kingspan Stadium until 2024. On 30 May 2015, the 2015 Pro12 Grand Final was played at the Kingspan Stadium.
Glasgow Warriors The Glasgow Warriors are a professional rugby union side from Scotland. The team plays in the United Rugby Championship league and in the European Professional Club Rugby tournaments. In the 2014–15 season they won the Pro12 title and beca ...
beat
Munster Munster ( or ) is the largest of the four provinces of Ireland, located in the south west of the island. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" (). Following the Nor ...
31–13. On 26 August 2017, the 2017 Women's Rugby World Cup Final was played at the Kingspan Stadium.
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
beat
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
41–32. The semi-final matches and some play-off matches of the Women's Rugby World Cup were also played at the stadium.


American Football

In 1942, Ravenhill was the scene of the first game of
American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...
ever played on the island of Ireland, played between teams representing service and artillery units of the
United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
stationed in Northern Ireland during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
before an audience of more than 8000. In 2022, Ravenhill hosted Shamrock Bowl XXXIV, the annual championship of American Football Ireland. UCD defeated
Dublin Rebels The Dublin Rebels are an American football team based in Dublin, Ireland. As of 2025, the team competes in the Premier Division of American Football Ireland (AFI). They are the most successful team in the top flight of AFI, having won the Sha ...
in the game by a score of 52-24 to secure their first Shamrock Bowl title.


2009 Redevelopment

The new stand at Ravenhill was officially opened on 9 October 2009 by First Minister Peter Robinson, before a match between Ulster and
Bath Rugby Bath Rugby is a professional rugby union club in Bath, Somerset, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. Founded in 1865 as Bath Football Club, since 1894 the club has played at the Recreation Ground, Bath, Rec ...
. The stand has however been in use since the first home match of the 2009–2010 season, against
Edinburgh Rugby Edinburgh Rugby (formerly Edinburgh Reivers, Edinburgh Gunners) is one of the two professional rugby union teams from Scotland. The club competes in the United Rugby Championship, along with the Glasgow Warriors, its oldest rival. Edinburgh play ...
. The stand is on the Mount Merrion side of the ground, and consists of a terraced area, over 500 premium seats, and 20 corporate boxes. The terraced area is now covered by a roof for the first time in the stadium's history. The cost of the project is approximately £4.5 million, and has been funded by a mixture of public-sector funding, sales of premium tickets and boxes, and loans from the IRFU.


2012–2014 Redevelopment

In 2011, the
Northern Ireland Executive The Northern Ireland Executive (Irish language, Irish: ''Feidhmeannas Thuaisceart Éireann'', Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster Scots: ''Norlin Airlan Executive'') is the devolution, devolved government of Northern Ireland, an administrative branc ...
announced that it had granted £138m for various stadium redevelopment projects throughout Northern Ireland. Ulster Rugby received £14.5m, which was used to redevelop Ravenhill and expand its capacity from 12,000 to 18,000. In 2012, Ulster Rugby confirmed that three new stands would be built at Ravenhill, with work commencing in late 2012. Two new stands at the Memorial and Aquinas ends of the stadium were completed while the main stand was demolished and rebuilt. The major refurbishment was completed in April 2014.Plans for Ravenhill refurbishment are unveiled
- BBC News, 24 January 2012


Ireland Internationals

''Updated 21 April 2021''


Rugby World Cup Matches

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Ulster Home Attendance

''Up to date as of the 2022–23 season.''


Ravenhill Facilities Prior to Redevelopment


References


External links

{{1999 Rugby World Cup Venues Ulster Rugby Rugby union stadiums in Ireland Sports venues in Belfast Sports venues completed in 1923 1923 establishments in Northern Ireland Venues of the United Rugby Championships