Stade du Hameau
Pau, Aquitaine, France
Stade du Hameau, Pau, France — opened 1949, 2 rugby league games hosted, home of Section Paloise (rugby union, since 1991) -- rugby league itself was never based here.
Sourcing caveat: Wikipedia carries conflicting figures for both matches, both disagreeing with Rugby League Project. For the 1972 World Cup fixture, Wikipedia's dedicated Stade du Hameau article states Great Britain won 43-13 in front of 8,000, while Wikipedia's own 1972 World Cup group-stage article gives 53-19 and 7,500 attendance -- Rugby League Project (independently confirmed via direct WebFetch) agrees with the latter, more specialised article, and that figure is published here. For the 1951 fixture, Wikipedia's Stade du Hameau article claims an attendance of approximately 20,000, calling it the largest rugby league crowd ever at the ground -- more than four times Rugby League Project's recorded 4,300 (also independently confirmed via direct WebFetch). No third source could be found to settle this large discrepancy, so both figures are noted here rather than one being silently chosen.
Ground facts
| Opened | 1949 (Construction began 1948, officially inaugurated 9 October 1949; current capacity 14,588 (expanded to 18,324 after a 2017 renovation). Still standing and in active use, home to Section Paloise rugby union since 1991.) |
| Home club | Section Paloise (rugby union, since 1991) -- rugby league itself was never based here |
| Games hosted (rugby league, on record) | 2 |
| Top recorded crowd | 7,500 |
| Capacity | 18,324 (post-2017 renovation) |
| Years used | 1951–1972 |
| Location | Pau, Aquitaine |
Name history
Rugby league history
Rugby league in Pau was a fairly marginal, twice-interrupted presence: the local club, Pau XIII, founded 1934, played its home matches at the much smaller Stade Bourbaki (capacity approx. 2,000), was suspended 1940-44 under Vichy France's wartime ban on the sport, and could not resume there afterwards when its landlords refused to renew the lease -- a 1970s revival as AS Pau-Bearn XIII folded for good in 1982. Stade du Hameau itself, the region's largest stadium, hosted only two one-off representative/international rugby league fixtures rather than any club's regular tenancy: a Bearn/Gascogne representative side lost 12-32 to the touring 1951 New Zealand Kiwis (attendance 4,300), and Great Britain beat New Zealand 53-19 at the 1972 World Cup (attendance 7,500, the ground's top crowd, described elsewhere as a World Cup record score).
Notable games played here
| Date | Competition | Result |
|---|---|---|
| World Cup Table, 4 Nov 1972 | 1972 Rugby League World Cup | Great Britain 53-19 New Zealand |
Only matches we have full, sourced records for are listed here — other historic games mentioned above may not have a dedicated match page built yet (World Cup coverage in particular is still expanding tournament by tournament).
Sources
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
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