The final two home fixtures won't be played at the Rec as plans to speed up work to redevelop the ground
Bath Rugby have announced that their final two home fixtures of the 2026/27 PREM campaign will take place away from The Rec.
The decision has been taken as a result of plan to accelerate the construction plan for the club's new stadium.
The revised schedule, designed to ensure the transformed stadium is ready for Bath by the beginning of the 2028/9 campaign, means the matches against Harlequins on the weekend of May 15 and Saracens on June 5 will be relocated elsewhere. No official details have been announced yet as to where Johann van Graan's side would play.
While not mentioned in the club's announcement, if Bath qualify for a home semi-final, as they have achieved in each of the previous three campaigns, this fixture will also need to be staged elsewhere it would appear.
"We are in discussion with alternative host venues, and we will update you once the location for these fixtures is confirmed," Bath chief executive Tarquin McDonald wrote in an open letter to club supporters.
"Our goal is to minimise disruption as far as possible, and we hope that you will all join us and help make these fixtures a proper home away from home."
The letter added: "We have also been working hard to progress our stadium redevelopment project. We remain on track to commence construction in 2027.
"Our stadium designs - which were approved at planning committee last year - set out a phased construction over three seasons whilst we continue to play rugby at The Rec, with the goal of maintaining home advantage for the team, matchday rituals for our supporters and retaining all the wider economic benefits for the city.
"We are also acutely aware of the impact of construction on nearby residents, and that shortening the duration of construction work would help to mitigate this impact. This has been a focus for our project team over recent months.
"I am therefore delighted to confirm that we have submitted a planning amendment which seeks approval for an accelerated construction phasing plan for the new stadium. This amendment will shorten the overall construction period to approximately 18 months, with the aim to complete your new stadium and home for the start of the 2028/29 season, which is great news!
"The improved timeline is achieved by commencing the construction of the new East Stand first, where this was previously programmed to follow construction of the West Stand. The overall design remains exactly as per the planning approval received last year.
"To facilitate this improved timeline, we will need to create a slightly longer off-season in summer 2027 by taking the last two regular games of the 2026/27 season ‘on the road’ to an alternate ground.
"This means that our home fixtures against Harlequins and Saracens in Rounds 16 and 18 of the Gallagher PREM will be played away from The Rec to facilitate the commencement of construction work on the stadium, including the relocation of the pitch almost 25 metres into The Rec in time for the 2027/28 season.
"We are in discussion with alternative host venues and we will update you once the location for these fixtures is confirmed. Our goal is to minimise disruption as far as possible, and we hope that you will all join us and help make these fixtures a proper home away from home. If any of our Season Ticket Holders are unable to attend at the alternate ground we will, of course, credit your account accordingly.
"This means that our Gallagher PREM fixture against Newcastle Red Bulls on the weekend of 17 April 2027 will be our last ever fixture in the current configuration of The Rec, and we will ensure we mark this milestone appropriately.
"I am sure you will have questions as our stadium development project progresses and we want to ensure you are well informed throughout. This long-awaited project is transformational and will be fantastic for both the club and the city. At the same time, it is natural that each of you will be thinking, “how does this impact me?”.
The plan will see the current temporary stands on the Recreation Ground replaced with a 18,000-seat stadium. Construction of the stadium was set to take three years, but now seems to be cut down to 18 months.
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Bath Rugby have played at the Rec for more than 130 years. However much of the stadium's capacity is held in a temporary stand which for many years has been dismantled during the off-season.