Justin Bieber concert forces Stormers to move URC home games to Stellenbosch

The Stormers will play some of their upcoming home United Rugby Championship games in Stellenbosch and Gqeberha.

This announcement was made due to some of the URC champions' home games clashing with pre-booked events at their Cape Town Stadium home.

The Stormers will therefore play three home games at the Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch and one at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Gqeberha.

The first two home games of the season - against Connacht (24 September) and Edinburgh (1 October) - had to be moved to Stellenbosch because of a Justin Bieber concert taking place at Cape Town Stadium on 28 September.

The Stormers said in a statement that the Bieber concert requires significant construction in the stadium.

"While every effort was made to avoid these clashes, the events at DHL Stadium had been booked up to a year in advance, while the United Rugby Championship fixtures could only be confirmed recently," the statement read.

The Stormers' Round 9 clash with Welsh outfit Dragons will be played at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium due to preparations for the Cape Town Sevens at Cape Town Stadium the following weekend.

The Stormers will head back to the Danie Craven Stadium for their final regular season game against Italian outfit Benetton (21 April 2023) as a Monster Jam truck show takes place at Cape Town Stadium.

The Stormers will still play significant matches at Cape Town Stadium - they'll host Champions Cup matches there against London Irish in December and Clermont Auvergne in January.

There will also be Christmas- and New Year's-themed derbies against the Bulls and Lions, while all of Western Province's Currie Cup home games will take place at Cape Town Stadium.