Worcester Warriors
Worcester Warriors are probably the most controversial addition to the Championship, and there are plenty of rugby supporters, myself included, who believe they should have had to work their way back up from the bottom of the pyramid following the club's spectacular financial collapse.
The arguments surrounding what happened have been well rehearsed, so I'm not going to go over them all again here. What is worth pointing out is that the current Warriors did not simply reclaim their old Premiership place. After more than two years out of professional rugby, the new ownership applied through the RFU's open process for a place in the new second tier and was accepted. The club has also committed to settling inherited rugby debts.Whatever your opinion of that decision, there is one thing that is difficult to argue with:
Sixways is easily the best stadium in the Championship.
It is almost slightly ridiculous to find a ground of this quality at this level. Sixways holds around 12,000 spectators, has substantial covered stands, plenty of hospitality and conference facilities and around 1,000 parking spaces. It is also immediately off Junction 6 of the M5, making it one of the easier rugby grounds in the country to reach by car.
Compared with most Championship grounds, the difference is enormous.
There is no sense of making do with a small stand bolted onto the side of a sports field. Sixways was designed as a modern professional stadium and still looks the part. The stands surround the pitch properly, there is plenty of space around the ground and the whole place has the infrastructure you would expect from a former Premiership club.
And that is probably both the attraction and the slightly strange thing about watching Championship rugby here. You can look around and think, this really shouldn't be a second-tier ground.
The Warriors have also been working on plans to redevelop Sixways further, with the aim of creating a wider sports, entertainment, health and wellbeing destination around the stadium. Planning permission for elements of the redevelopment was granted in 2026.There is, of course, a sizeable elephant in the room. Worcester's previous financial problems destroyed a great deal of goodwill, and some supporters of other clubs remain unhappy that the club was allowed back into professional rugby at Championship level. That debate isn't going away any time soon.
But from a ground-hopping point of view, Sixways is a very different proposition.
It is modern, comfortable, easy to reach and has all the facilities you could reasonably want. The new owners have also been keen to make the stadium financially sustainable rather than relying solely on rugby, with events, conferences, partnerships and other activities helping to keep Sixways operating throughout the year.
And there is something rather satisfying about seeing a decent crowd back at a stadium that spent more than two years without professional Warriors rugby. The supporters have been through a miserable few years, so the return of their club has clearly meant a great deal to them.
So Worcester is one where I'll leave the arguments about whether they should be here to everybody else.
For me, the important point when reviewing the ground is much simpler.
If you're working your way around the Championship looking at rugby grounds, Sixways is the one you really shouldn't miss.
Just don't expect every other ground in the division to look remotely like it.
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