Newcastle, Bristol, Liverpool and Coventry supposedly in the running for next year.

Don't think you can beat Newcastle on any count unless you think taking it further around the country should be a priority, as a city and centrally located stadium, only Cardiff comes close.

Bristol would be good, with real possibility for growing the game if it's followed up with a League 1 team, but I do think the downside to there and Coventry is the size of the stadiums. Surely the RFL need to be looking at 35k+ to host it?

Maybe Bristol + Cov, Oxford as well, would be good cities for the RFL to take Super League games to like the NRL do to Darwin, Perth, Cairns, etc. as opposed a full weekend.

If those are the options it has to be Newcastle or Liverpool. The stadia in Bristol and Coventry simply aren't big enough. Part of the magic weekend for me is the unrestricted seating which needs a bigger stadium. I'd be up for a weekend in Dublin if that was an option though.

problem with london is hotel prices although to be fair the hotel prices in newcastle get out of control for magic weekend.

bristol and coventry doesnt have the stadia so cant see it happening. you are right though and super league needs to take some fixtures on the road. The clubs wont do it though which is a damn shame.

personally would like to see magic moved on. Time to try a new venue so Liverpool sounds good!

The stadiums at Bristol and Coventry are too small, if you have unreserved seats you can only sell 90% of the capacity, so that takes things down to the around the 30k mark and even the lesser attended Sunday gets that at present. They are also deep in Union territory, so while we may get some curious Union fans to come along for a day or weekend, are we realistically expecting them to become converts?

While Liverpool is a great city, Anfield is a bit out of town and you'd be relying a lot on a fanzone in the next door park to provide drinks and entertainment.

Overall I'd like to see it stay in Newscastle, but no harm at all in the RFL trying to get the hosting fee increased by touting it around, I hope they are getting the host cities to commit to a marketing budget as well, more local publicity the better.

It should stay Newcastle for me. I think it's found its home.

Plus I couldn't go this year due to being on holiday and after enjoying it so much in 2015 I want to go again.

Not Newcastle. Ridiculous hotel prices.

You don't think Liverpool hotels would similarly whack up their prices?

Manchester or Cardiff didn't to that degree!

Cardiff did. The main reason given for leaving was that Cardiff took the with prices of everything, beer, accommodation and food going through the roof. IMO Newcastle is fantastic. Book a hotel in plenty of time and you won't go wrong.

I think you'll see high prices wherever it goes. It's becoming a victim of its own success now, which is great for the game, it helps raise RL's profile, but cities are bidding on the basis of what it can do for the local economy.

Give it to the highest bidder, the sport needs the money.

And potentially lose out on ticket sales if it isn't the right venue/location

Well I don't think any of the mooted locations would be a disaster. For purely selfish reasons I'd much prefer a return to Cardiff than Newcastle. Bristol is even nearer to me. I rather like the city, but agree in hasn't really got the stadia. Plus it hasn't really got a big 'city-centre' in the way that Cardiff, Manchester, Liverpool or Newcastle have; it's more a 'bundle of villages' kinda city.

The city centre is always expensive on a weekend, its the stag and hen do effect and a relative shortage of hotel rooms. A nw hotel opened this year in the 'stephenson quarter'.

Theres a decent transport system and plenty of choice at far cheaper prices in easy travelling distance. Whitley bay gosforth cramlington gateshead morpeth are all in 10- 20 mins travel to the toon.

I'd like to see it at Hillsborough, Sheffield, it's centrally located meaning fans can get there from the M62 corridor easily and in many cases 90 minutes or less, but also a damn sight less travel time for those of us in the Southern regions where Newcastle is a 10 hour round trip by car.
Train access is also excellent.

As for expensive hotels/B&B iaround London, not really, the prices are less likely to go up because there is always a surplus of places to stay
As for Coventry, same again, good access and creating a full stadium atmosphere and a demand for tickets will mean no cheap ticket giveaways.

Good call.

Let's take it to France ....

Seriously, I am NOT an expansionist but the Frenchies would turn out for it big time & quite a few Brits would travel too *obviously to a big degree down on a UK venue*

but it has better *generally* weather, it's more interesting than going to Newcastle, Cardiff, Liverpool (been to all those places) & the RFL would jizz themselves daft if it went to the Catalan region.

Bring it on.

Edit.

+ with all the poop going on for the French at the moment, an event like this could be a boost & us Brits could show some solidarity with our near neighbours.

Newcastle again for me, if not the Liverpool.

It's a pity Notts Forrest ground isn't a bit bigger because Nottingham would be an ideal place imo. Ground practically in the City , great nightlife, pubs, loads of B&B's/hotels etc, near the train station and almost bang in the middle of the Country, so it's fairly easy for everyone to get to.

Great night life and pubs? There's hardly any pubs left in the city centre!

Why have a lot shut down. Surprising with the amount of students that are in Nottingham. It's a few years since I've been drinking in Nottingham City but it used to be a great night out. When I've gone down to Trent Bridge to watch the Cricket I've drunk in the likes of Larwood & Voce, Stratford Haven, Trent Bridge Inn, The Test Match and Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem all good places to have a drink.

Seriously? I live in WAKEFIELD 22 miles from hillsborough I have a customer across the road from the stadium, it takes me 40 mins to get there and the trams don't come out that far, bad call for a delapadated stadium (irony overload from a Wakey fan)
Have it a Leeds elland road if your wanting it still in the heartlands

Don't like the idea of an extra fixture as I believe the season should be everybody plays each other home & away. However, I am willing to accept the Magic Weekend if it is promoting the sport and to do that it needs to be away from the heartlands and move around the country.

On that basis, Liverpool is ruled out because it's on the M62 corridor even though it doesn't have a side. Good venue for 4 Nations Final but not Magic Weekend. Newcastle has had it for a couple of seasons so probably time for a move. I'm not sure if there are plans in Bristol to enter a side into the competition. Therefore, out of the 4 proposed, I would personally choose Coventry to give the game a boost down there

Leppings Lane tram stop is right next to the stadium... Also got Hillsborough Park just down the road for a fan park.

Bramhall Lane could work also, a little bit smaller, but closer to the city centre. No real place for a fan park there though.

If it's a few years since you've been to Nottingham I think you'll find it's changed a lot. Students (preferably rich, foreign ones) are a big new 'industry' there (as they are in many of our cities these days). However they housed in their own 'bantustans' with custom-built apartment blocks, their own branches of Subway, McDonald's, etc. That way they never have to actually mix with the local people. Or use city-centre pubs or suchlike. But it's a phenomenon that's going on all over the country. Bristol and Bath are going down the same route.

I don't live in Nottingham but I am there a fair bit.