The Stoop in the western suburbs of London, England, officially the Twickenham Stoop Stadium, is the home stadium of both Harlequins rugby union team and Harlequins Rugby League who play in the Guinness Premiership and Super League respectively.
The stadium has a capacity of 12,700. In 1906, Harlequins were invited by the Rugby Football Union to use the new national stadium in Twickenham. In those early days, only one or two internationals were played there during the season, and it wasn’t long before the RFU ground became the headquarters of the Harlequin Football Club.
In 1963, the Quins acquired an athletics ground with 14 acres (57,000 m2) just over the road from the RFU ground, which became the Harlequin training pitch.
The ground was named Stoop Memorial Ground after Adrian Stoop, a former England international and longtime Harlequins player and president but is generally known as “The Stoop” with even the Harlequins’ official website frequently using the informal name.
The ground’s official name changed in July 2005 to Twickenham Stoop Stadium. The redeveloped Lexus Stand on the western side of the ground opened in September 2005.
Details
- Langhorn Drive, Twickenham, TW2 7SX, England.
- Club Website: quins.london
- Capacity of 14,800