Hampden switch for Edinburgh v Glasgow to attract new fans
Hampden Park has previously hosted athletics as well as football
- Published
Glasgow Warriors will stage their home leg of this season's 1872 Cup tie against Edinburgh at Hampden Park to try to attract a new generation of fans, says managing director Al Kellock.
Warriors will face their Scottish rivals in the first match of the United Rugby Championship festive double-header on Sunday 22 December (15:00 GMT), a day later than originally scheduled.
Edinburgh traditionally elect to host their derby matches at Murrayfield, with a capacity of 67,000, rather than their own Hive Stadium.
Last year's game between the sides last season drew a crowd just short of 38,000 at Murrayfield.
With the capacity at Warriors' home ground of Scotstoun currently just above 7,000, the URC champions have moved to utilise the 52,000-capacity national football stadium to ensure they can maximise the opportunities that come with the showpiece fixture in Scottish rugby.
“How do we make sure that every kid in Glasgow knows that they've got the URC champions in their own city and be proud of that fact?,” Kellock told the BBC's Scotland Rugby Podcast.
“This is our opportunity to say: 'Come and see the champions play and create an unbelievable atmosphere’. And then we go from there.
"It's the right time to do it as well. If we can get this to be the major success we want it to be, we can do more of it. We can prove the concept and we can go again.”
Bigger Scotstoun on agenda
Kellock has a long-standing desire to increase the capacity at Scotstoun and believes the Commonwealth Games coming to Glasgow in 2026 could see that ambition realised.
“The future of Scotstoun we've always said is to try and increase the capacity and improve the event, improve the fan experience, which we're working hard on," Kellock added.
“The Commonwealth Games announcement is exciting and we'll be in that conversation as to what a legacy at Scotstoun could look like because ultimately a legacy at Scotstoun includes us."