Josh Warrington fight: Headingley Stadium refused licence

Warrington's homecoming fight was planned as part of a wider series of events at the stadium

Leeds Rhinos have been refused a licence for Headingley Stadium to host a fight starring boxer Josh Warrington.

Warrington, the former IBF world featherweight champion, was due to face Mauricio Lara at the stadium in his Leeds homecoming fight in September.

But plans for the stadium's rugby field to host two boxing or wrestling events annually have been unanimously turned down by Leeds City Council.

Leeds Rhinos boss Gary Hetherington said the decision was "a shock".

Previously, boxing promoter Eddie Hearn had announced the rematch between Warrington and Lara would take place at the stadium on 4 September.

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Mr Hetherington said: "So much work has gone on behind the scenes to bring the Warrington rematch back to Leeds and I suspect Eddie Hearn may now look to take the fight to another city."

Describing the council's decision as a "huge disappointment", he added: "I know Josh will be very disappointed, too."

Leeds Rhinos and Yorkshire County Cricket Club had recently invested £46m in the redevelopment of the stadium and its business plan relied on attracting major events, he said.

If given the go-ahead, the famous stadium, which hosts both international rugby and cricket on the same site, was expected to host crowds of up to 25,000 at boxing or wrestling events.

Leeds Rhinos games are still being played behind closed doors due to coronavirus restrictions

Speaking of the decision to reject the plan, Councillor John Illingworth said 25,000 fans was "a lot of people".

He said there were fears they would "take over" in a residential area at a time when people would be sleeping and when public transport would have stopped running.

"The late night finish certainly is a problem. If they finished the same time as a rugby match, I don't think there'd be the same issues," he said.

"We are all keen to see Rhinos doing well. It is a problem for them if they've got expensive facilities standing idle."

Gary Hetherington said the club would now consider the ramifications of the decision.