Former England opener Mark Butcher, current captain Joe Root and England all‑rounder Harry Brook have all voiced their displeasure that the 2027 men’s Ashes series will not feature a Test match in the north of England. The decision has sparked a lively debate among former players, current stars, pundits and supporters who feel that the historic cricket‑loving regions of Yorkshire and Lancashire have been unfairly excluded. The venues for the 2027 Ashes were announced last month and the itinerary consists of five Tests, none of which are located north of Nottingham’s Trent Bridge, which will host the opening match.
The traditional northern grounds Headingley in Leeds and Old Trafford in Manchester are conspicuously absent. Instead, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has retained Lord’s, Edgbaston and The Kia Oval as returning venues and introduced the Utilita Bowl in Southampton as a brand‑new Test location. Butcher, who retired from international cricket in 2015, told Sky Sports that the omission of a northern venue was puzzling and, in his view, detrimental to the sport’s nationwide appeal. "I think anybody but the most partisan Hampshire cricket supporter would recognise that in a sport and particularly in a series like The Ashes, where the interest in the game is at its peak at any point over a four‑year cycle, that the game being marketed as a game for everybody needs to have some representation and needs to have a game in the north," he said.
He went on to suggest that the decision was left to the “bean counters” – the financial planners who allocate fixtures based on revenue projections rather than cricketing tradition. The former batsman added, "I find it extraordinary that there’ll be no Ashes cricket up in the north of England beyond Trent Bridge next year. It’s bizarre.
Of course, I have a certain affinity with this ground [Headingley] and with Old Trafford as a player. I also think that for visiting teams, there are five or six grounds that have an enormous amount of history when it comes to Ashes cricket. Sadly, the Utilita Bowl is not one of them." England’s current captain, Joe Root, echoed many of those sentiments.
While acknowledging that the ECB’s scheduling process is complex, he argued that player input should carry weight, especially when a venue has delivered consistent success. "I’d love to play as many games as possible here," Root said of Headingley during a pre‑match interview. "It’s a surface that provides brilliant Test cricket and one that we’ve had quite a lot of success on recently. So it’s a shame we don’t get to play at Headingley next year, but I’m sure we’ll see many more brilliant Test matches here." Root also highlighted the practical side of the debate, noting that England have won all seven of their most recent Tests at Headingley, including a dominant innings‑and‑103‑run victory over Pakistan earlier this summer.
He suggested that the team’s strong record at the Leeds ground should be a factor when the ECB decides where to stage future matches. "As a player, it would be nice to have a choice, but obviously this is a slightly different system in England compared to Australia," he added, hinting at the more centralized decision‑making structure that governs English cricket. Brook, the young left‑handed batsman from Yorkshire, was equally candid.
When asked how disappointed he was about the lack of a northern Test, he replied, "Slightly, to be honest. I think we’ve had a hell of a lot of success here [Headingley] in Test match cricket.
You go back to 2019 in the Ashes when Stokes played that ridiculous innings, then the last Ashes Test a couple of years ago where we kept the Ashes alive. I personally love playing here. It’s a great venue.
It’s one of my favourites, if not my favourite ground to bat on as well." Brook also stressed that the decision was out of the players’ hands. "It’s disappointing, but we don’t make those decisions.
The hierarchy makes them and we just get told where to play," he said, underscoring the limited influence that current cricketers have over the fixture list. The omission of Headingley and Old Trafford has broader implications beyond the immediate disappointment of the three players. Historically, both grounds have produced some of the most iconic moments in Ashes history – from the 1902 “Ashes of the Century” at Old Trafford to the dramatic 2019 Headingley finish that saw Ben Stokes rescue England’s series.
Excluding them from the 2027 schedule could be seen as a missed opportunity to tap into the deep-rooted passion of northern fans, many of whom travel long distances to support their teams. From a commercial perspective, the ECB may argue that the Utilita Bowl in Southampton offers a modern facility with state‑of‑the‑art amenities and a potential to attract new audiences in the south‑west. However, critics point out that the financial benefits of staging a Test at a historic venue—where ticket demand is consistently high and the atmosphere is electric—often outweigh the novelty of a brand‑new stadium. Looking ahead, the ECB has promised that both Headingley and Old Trafford will be part of the Ashes rotation again in 2031, giving the northern grounds a future slot.
In the meantime, the women’s Ashes will feature a Test at Headingley next summer, providing at least one high‑profile international match for the Leeds crowd before the men’s side returns in 2029. The full schedule for the 2027 men’s Ashes is as follows: - First Test: Friday 18 June – Tuesday 22 June (11 am) – Trent Bridge, Nottingham - Second Test: Wednesday 30 June – Sunday 4 July (11 am) – Lord’s, London - Third Test: Thursday 8 July – Monday 12 July (11 am) – Edgbaston, Birmingham - Fourth Test: Wednesday 21 July – Sunday 25 July (11 am) – Utilita Bowl, Southampton - Fifth Test: Thursday 29 July – Monday 2 August (11 am) – The Kia Oval, London While the timetable confirms that the traditional southern venues will host the bulk of the series, the ongoing conversation about geographic representation suggests that the ECB may need to revisit its approach to scheduling.
For now, the northern cricket community remains hopeful that the historic grounds will soon return to the Ashes rota, preserving the rich heritage and regional pride that have long defined this storied rivalry.