Principality Stadium Ranked No1 for Excitement
The home of Welsh Rugby, the Pricipality Stadium
©PA
When it comes to watching rugby you will, no doubt, wholeheartedly love your own team’s venue the most. It’s a matter of principal! But, for the Six Nations, where does your home country and its stadium measure up against the other five teams for excitement?
Well, according to BWIN, the Welsh and the Principality Stadium come out on top, but what makes this venue so exciting compared to the others? Well it all came down to these factors:
Points Scored Per Game
It would make sense that a high point scoring game would cause excitement, unless, of course, it’s only one team scoring. After all, when a match is completely one sided, things can get pretty dull for spectators. Here England came out on top with an average of 48.5 while Scotland and Murrayfield came in last with an average of 38.2 points per game.
Tries Scored Per Game
England win the title here again with most tries per game in Twickenham at 4.9. Again, Scotland ranked 6th with their average number of tries in Murrayfield a small 3.2. Both the points and tries average had very similar statistics with both 3rd ranks going to the Welsh. Points are exciting to an extent, but for the really exciting matches the next four statistics were the most important in determining the Six Nation’s most exciting venue.
Close Games (7 Points or Fewer)
Unless you’re watching your own team winning by a mile, a game where there is a clear winner is pretty boring. Much more exciting is a close game where either team could take the points. The winner of the Close Game crown goes jointly to Ireland and France where an astonishing 42% of the games played in their stadiums came down to a nail-biting 7 points or fewer.
Cards Shown
No one wants to see their own team receive a card, but there’s no denying that a game that is full of cards and action makes for an exciting one. Especially when the odd fight breaks out! Principality were ranked 1st out of the six stadiums here with a staggering 36 yellow and 2 red cards being handed to players over the years.
Italy and the Stadio Olimpico came in second with 33 yellow cards and 1 red card, while Twickenham came in last with just 22 yellows and zero red cards during the Six Nations.
Championships Decided
When your country cements their championship, it’s certainly going to be an exciting time. Especially when the trophies come out. Unsurprisingly, Principality ranked top here with a total of 6. In second place were France with 5 championships and Italy coming in 6th with zero championships decided.
Grand Slams Completed
The only thing more exciting than winning the Six Nations is obliterating your opponents by winning all your games and receiving a Grand Slam. It’s little surprise then that Principality came joint rank 1st here with France’s Stade de France with an incredible 4 Grand Slams completed. England had the least with zero Grand Slams completed in Twickenham.
So, overall, the Welsh and their Principality Stadium came out as the most exciting venue overall. Mainly due to the fact that so many championships and Grand Slams have been decided in the stadium. But really, no venue is more exciting than one that has your own team winning in it. If only that was guaranteed when the tickets were bought!
