RFU announce ticket price hike with England vs New Zealand tickets to cost up to £195

A new ticket scheme will see the focus put on club members and families as kids prices are announced for the first time, but fewer than five per cent will end up on general sale

Tickets for England vs New Zealand will cost from £70 to £195 (Getty)

England fans will have to pay up to £195 to watch this November’s Test against the world champion All Blacks after the Rugby Football Union announced their first ticket price increases for more than two years, with fewer than five per cent of the 82,000 tickets set to be put on general sale.

The RFU will reveal their new ticketing scheme this week that is focussed on rewarding rugby club members, with 50 per cent of all tickets between now and the 2019 Rugby World Cup being given to clubs around the country for first refusal at a discounted price. The governing body are also looking to attract more families to the national stadium, with kids tickets introduced for the first time for all matches except the Six Nations.

That means that the previously reported figure of up to £800 for a family of four to watch England will be cut significantly for the autumn internationals and the three Rugby World Cup warm-up matches next year that will be held at Twickenham plus one Test in the north, with parents able to buy tickets for their children for just £20, taking the overall total to a top price of £430.

But despite this, fans will still face higher ticket prices than ever before to see the England national team, with banding announced for both premium prices that cover hospitality and corporate seats, and entitlement fees that are distributed to clubs and general sale. The most expensive match will unsurprisingly be England’s first Test against New Zealand in four years, with adult tickets ranging from £70 to the top end fee previously mentioned, while in contrast to that the first autumn international against Japan will see prices ranging from £25 to £70.

To put that into comparison, top-end prices for the upcoming FA Cup final between Manchester United and Chelsea are £50 less than the RFU’s most expensive tickets, although the Wimbledon final, Royal Ascot, the NFL in London and a ticket for the British and Irish Lions all attracted significantly higher fees.

RFU chief executive Steve Brown was also keen to stress that between now and the start of the World Cup, two-thirds of all tickets sold will be for under £100 and a third of the remaining tickets under £50, with around 10 per cent of each 82,000 sell-out being sold at the top-end fee. The RFU have also announced new schemes to encourage players to join or remain with local clubs and subsequently reward them, as not only will half of all tickets go back to the game, but 16-24-year-olds will be able to claim a free ticket to next year’s match against the Barbarians.

Brown also revealed that England gain enough interest in their toughest Tests to fill the stadium nearly 25 times, and he believes that the recent downturn in form from Eddie Jones’ side will not impact ticket sales for this autumn’s Test series. But because of the demand at all levels to see the match, fewer than five per cent will end up being released on general sale.

New Zealand will play England in November for the first time in four years (Getty) (Getty Images)

“It's the blockbuster,” Brown said of the Test against the All Blacks on 10 November. “We haven't played them for four years and the demand is exceptional for that.

“It is still a significant game. We are not No 2 at the moment, but we are not far off and it is an opportunity to get back there.”

“A continuously winning England drives demands, but there is something special about the games here. There are only six or seven big games a year.

“It has become a big event, an all-day event that people enjoy. People are here for the spectacle and to see England play. But they are also seeing a very high standard of rugby.”