New agreement: Why Stormers can officially call Cape Town Stadium 'home'

NEWS: Cape Town Stadium has officially become home to Western Province Rugby following the signing of an Anchor Tenant Agreement.

The agreement is for an initial 99-year period with an option for WP Rugby to renew for a further two periods, giving a secure home ground for their teams.

The relationship will see WP Rugby playing an anticipated 12 to 15 matches a year at the stadium. These matches will include Stormers and Western Province games. It could also include any Springbok Test matches allocated to WP Rugby by the South African Rugby Union.

Following the signing of a heads of agreement between the City of Cape Town, Western Province Rugby Football Union and Western Province Rugby in 2019, the Anchor Tenant Agreement, which is an amplification of the heads of agreement, has been signed between WP Rugby, the City and the Cape Town Stadium (RF) SOC Limited, the Municipal Entity tasked with the management and business growth of Cape Town Stadium.

Stormers head coach John Dobson said that having already experienced some special times at Cape Town Stadium over the last two years, his team is looking forward to what the future holds at their home ground.

"The way that our team and our supporters have taken to Cape Town Stadium has been incredible.

We live in a beautiful city and play in an iconic stadium in front of the best fans in the world.

"We are all looking forward to making more great memories at the stadium in the years to come," he said.

Lesley De Reuck, CEO of Cape Town Stadium (RF) SOC Limited said: "This is an exciting time for us. We are delighted that the stadium is now the official home of WP Rugby and we look forward to their future “home” matches being played at the stadium.”

Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis welcomed the signing of the agreement and looks forward to the Stormers and Western Province building a legacy at Cape Town Stadium.

"I look forward to watching the mighty Stormers take on the world from their new home at Cape Town Stadium. This agreement is good news for sport and tourism, and for this excellent facility which hosts world-class events all-year-round,” he said.

Delivering on the mandate of being a multi-purpose stadium, the stadium will continue hosting Cape Town City Football Club matches as well as a number of international concerts each year.

Aside from its bowl events, Cape Town Stadium also hosts a number of trade shows, conferences and exhibitions.

De Reuck added: "Cape Town Stadium has transformed over the last two years, and now boasts a busy and exciting calendar of events for the future years. We welcome WP Rugby as our primary anchor tenant and look forward to creating value for the City of Cape Town and its residents in the future.”