The perfect ways to experience rugby in Cardiff

If you love rugby, you won’t be disappointed by Cardiff on match days – the city comes alive when Wales take to the pitch.

Stadium tours

Situated on the banks of the River Taff in the city centre, you can’t miss the Principality Stadium, which plays host to Wales’s international rugby matches. The 74,500 seater-stadium dominates the skyline. Go behind the scenes of Welsh rugby and take a guided tour of the stadium. There you can visit the Wales team’s dressing room, walk down to the pitch to the sounds of the fans in the stadium and lift a trophy in the President’s Box. You’ll also learn about the stadium’s retractable roof and the semi-artificial pitch, and see a VIP hospitality suite and the press conference room. The full stadium tour isn’t available on, and during the run-up to, matches and special events, but on these days, there’s a 40-minute mini tour that takes in some of the highlights of the stadium tour.

Watch Wales play

Want to watch Wales in action in Cardiff? Tickets for Wales’s big home international matches, such as the Six Nations matches against England or Ireland, or the autumn internationals against top teams such as New Zealand or Australia, tend to sell out quickly. Local rugby clubs are allocated tickets to Wales’s home matches and these go on sale before tickets are made available to the general public and members of the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) get priority booking, too. Tickets for the general public are sold via the WRU and Ticketline on Westgate Street. If all the tickets are sold out, try Seatwave.com. It’s the official site reselling tickets for Wales’s home international matches and the tickets are all verified by the WRU.

Cardiff rugby tickets

If you’re looking to watch a rugby match in Cardiff, why not go and see a Cardiff Blues rugby game? Cardiff rugby’s home team play in the BT Sport Cardiff Arms Park, next door to the Principality Stadium on Westgate Street. Many of Wales’s top international players, including captain Sam Warburton and Wales’s most capped player Gethin Jenkins, play for the Cardiff Blues as do regular Wales squad members Scott Andrews, Gareth Anscombe and Lloyd Williams. Tickets for Cardiff Blues’ home matches are available from the stadium’s ticket office in person, online or on the phone and they’re priced according to category – the sought-after Welsh derby matches are the most expensive (category A), while friendlies (category C) are the cheapest. There’s also an additional charge of £2 per ticket for those bought on match days.

Best pubs to watch the match

Don’t have a ticket to watch the match? Don’t worry, as the home of Welsh rugby, Cardiff comes alive on match days and the city’s bars and pubs fill up with supporters. Want a pub a stone’s throw from the stadium where you’ll be able to hear the roar of the fans? Try The City Arms opposite the Principality Stadium, it’s a Cardiff institution, or the Urban Tap House, where you can enjoy craft beers while watching the match. For large pubs with big screens, try The Gatekeeper opposite the stadium, or the Yard Bar & Kitchen, O’Neill’s, The Prince of Wales or Walkabout, all on St Mary Street. If you’re looking for somewhere full of character, go to the Old Arcade on Church Street, which has different beers and ales on sale, as well as rugby memorabilia on display.

Kit yourself out

Fancy getting your hands on an official Welsh rugby kit or becoming the proud owner of a WRU rubber ducky? Head to the WRU Store on Westgate Street, next door to the Principality Stadium, where you can buy all kinds of official Welsh rugby memorabilia from the afore mentioned items to mugs, keyrings, umbrellas and much more. Other rugby-themed stores in the city include Shop Rugby on Duke Street, where you can buy rugby equipment, boots, protective gear and the Cardiff Blues kit, and Rugby Heaven in the Queens Arcade, which sells rugby gear such as boot bags, tees and kits. If you’re on your way to watch the rugby, Cardiff city centre is packed with stalls on match days selling unofficial merchandise, such as scarves and daffodil heads.

Kit yourself out

Fancy getting your hands on an official Welsh rugby kit or becoming the proud owner of a WRU rubber ducky? Head to the WRU Store on Westgate Street, next door to the Principality Stadium, where you can buy all kinds of official Welsh rugby memorabilia from the afore mentioned items to mugs, keyrings, umbrellas and much more. Other rugby-themed stores in the city include Shop Rugby on Duke Street, where you can buy rugby equipment, boots, protective gear and the Cardiff Blues kit, and Rugby Heaven in the Queens Arcade, which sells rugby gear such as boot bags, tees and kits. If you’re on your way to watch the rugby, Cardiff city centre is packed with stalls on match days selling unofficial merchandise, such as scarves and daffodil heads.