21 JUL - 25 JUL 2027
Ashes 2027 Southampton Test: England v Australia
Utilita Bowl, Southampton
England Test Series
Ashes 2027 Southampton Test: England v Australia
Hospitality for England v Australia at the Utilita Bowl, Wednesday 21 to Sunday 25 July 2027: the ground's first men's Ashes Test, with play scheduled to start at 11am. The Shane Warne Stand holds the Shane Warne Suite and five Executive Boxes, and the on-site Hilton Southampton - Utilita Bowl has 79 pitch-facing rooms.
About
Hospitality at the Ashes 2027 Southampton Test takes your guests to the first men's Ashes Test ever staged at the Utilita Bowl in West End, Southampton. The fixture is England v Australia, 4th Rothesay Ashes Test, from Wednesday 21 to Sunday 25 July 2027, with play scheduled to start at 11am. Match tickets follow a separate timetable: the Utilita Bowl's own free ticket ballot closed at 11:59pm on Tuesday 29 September 2026, and general sale opens at 10am on Wednesday 14 October 2026.
When is the Ashes Test at Southampton?
The Ashes 2027 Southampton Test, England v Australia, is set for Wednesday 21 to Sunday 25 July 2027 at the Utilita Bowl, formerly the Rose Bowl and the Ageas Bowl. Play is scheduled to start at 11am, and for England internationals the venue opens its gates two hours earlier.
- Day 1: Wednesday 21 July 2027
- Day 2: Thursday 22 July 2027
- Day 3: Friday 23 July 2027
- Day 4: Saturday 24 July 2027
- Day 5: Sunday 25 July 2027
Southampton stages the Fourth Test of the Rothesay Men's Ashes, a five-Test series played between Friday 18 June and Monday 2 August 2027.
Which day of the Southampton Test should you book?
The Southampton Test has three weekdays, Wednesday 21 to Friday 23 July, which suit client entertaining, and a weekend, Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 July, which suits staff, family and groups of friends. The trade-off is that the weekend falls on Days 4 and 5, the days most exposed to the Test finishing early.
A Test is scheduled for five days but ends as soon as there is a result, and rain can cut play on any day, including the first. An early result cannot take Day 1 away, and each later day is more likely to find the match already over.
What does hospitality at the Utilita Bowl look like?
The Utilita Bowl's Shane Warne Stand holds two kinds of hospitality space: the Shane Warne Suite, which faces the pitch, is air-conditioned and has terrace access, and the stand's five Executive Boxes. Hospitality at England internationals runs from gate opening, two hours before the scheduled start, until one hour after the close of play.
Have England and Australia played at the Utilita Bowl before?
Yes, the Utilita Bowl has staged England v Australia in white-ball and women's cricket. England beat Australia by 100 runs there on 13 June 2005, in England's first men's T20 international. Aaron Finch hit 156 off 63 balls for Australia against England at the ground on 29 August 2013, at the time the highest score in a T20 international.
Australia retained the Women's Ashes at the Utilita Bowl on 16 July 2023, beating England by three runs in a one-day international.
Who holds the Ashes going into the Southampton Test?
Australia hold the Ashes going into the Southampton Test. They won the most recent series 4-1, in Australia in 2025-26. England's win in Melbourne in December 2025 was their first Test win in Australia since January 2011. The last series in England, in 2023, was drawn, and Australia retained the urn. They have held the Ashes since the 2017-18 series, and England last won them in 2015.
If the 2027 series is drawn, Australia keep the Ashes. Before the series in England starts, Australia and England play a one-off day-night Test at the MCG from 11 to 15 March 2027, the 150th Anniversary Test.
Australia's most recent Test series before their series in South Africa, at home to Bangladesh in August 2026, was drawn 1-1. As of September 2026, England's Test side is captained by Joe Root and coached by Stephen Fleming, and Australia are captained by Pat Cummins and coached by Andrew McDonald.
Frequently Asked Questions
At an English Test ground, a hospitality day usually brings a reserved seat looking out over play, a drink or light breakfast to start, then lunch and tea. Many packages add a bar and some add parking, and at the Southampton Test, as elsewhere, inclusions vary by package. Alcohol is served to over-18s only, and ID may be required. The Ashes 2027 hospitality guide goes through a typical Test day in more detail.
The Utilita Bowl's own hospitality for the Southampton Test goes to its Commercial Partners first and then to 2026 hospitality bookers, before any remaining packages go on general sale. Our guide to Ashes 2027 hospitality sets out each step of that release.
Prestige Corporate Events arranges hospitality for the Ashes 2027 Southampton Test by enquiry. Each booking is shaped around which of the Test's five days (Wednesday 21 to Sunday 25 July 2027) the group wants to attend.
Drivers heading to the Utilita Bowl in West End, Southampton, leave the M27 at Junction 7, 1.2 miles from the ground, and on-site parking there is limited, so it must be pre-booked through the venue. The closest station is Hedge End, under 2 miles away. Southampton Airport Parkway, a stop on South Western Railway's line from London Waterloo, is about 3.5 miles away. Our Utilita Bowl guide covers travel, parking and access in full.
Play at the Ashes 2027 Southampton Test is scheduled to start at 11am on Wednesday 21 July 2027, and the Utilita Bowl opens its gates two hours earlier. The ICC's playing conditions for men's Tests set six hours of scheduled play a day, split into three sessions by a 40-minute lunch and a 20-minute tea, and our guide to Test match timings covers how a day can run longer or shorter.
Yes. The Utilita Bowl, where the Southampton Test will be played, has its own hotel, Hilton Southampton - Utilita Bowl, which sits in the ground and overlooks it. Of its rooms, 79 are deluxe and pitch-facing. More on the hotel, its restaurant and the rest of the ground is on the Utilita Bowl venue page.
Yes, for men's cricket. The Ashes 2027 Southampton Test is the first men's Ashes Test ever staged at the Utilita Bowl, which becomes the 10th UK ground to stage one. The ground opened in 2001, staged a Women's Ashes one-day international in July 2023 and marked its 25th-anniversary season in 2026.
Tickets for the Southampton Test go on general sale at 10am on Wednesday 14 October 2026. Before that came the Utilita Bowl's own free ticket ballot, which closed at 11:59pm on Tuesday 29 September 2026; results of that ballot are due by Friday 2 October 2026, when successful applicants can start buying from midday. The full timeline is in the Ashes 2027 tickets guide.
As of September 2026, Joe Root captains England's Test side, in his second spell in the job, and Stephen Fleming is Test head coach. The England cricket team page covers how England's leadership changed in 2026, along with their Ashes record and honours.