Why is England vs Hungary taking place at Molineux?

England face Hungary in a home Nations League game on Tuesday night — but it will not take place in their usual surroundings.

Usually, this game would take place at Wembley Stadium in London. Wembley is viewed as the home of the England men’s team and is considered to be the national stadium.

However, this match will take at Molineux, the usual home of club side Wolverhampton Wanderers. Molineux is a stadium in the West Midlands — away from England’s usual playing base in London. It follows the clash with Italy taking place at the same ground.

The Athletic explains why that decision has been made below.

Well, this is part of a growing tradition for England.

Ahead of the 2016 European Championship, England played two games away from home. They faced Turkey at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester and Australia at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland.

In 2018, before the World Cup, they took on Costa Rica at Elland Road in Leeds and Switzerland at the King Power Stadium in Leicester.

Their pre-Euro 2020 games in 2021 – don’t ask about the name – took place at the Riverside Stadium in Middlesbrough.

It is understood the FA now always try to take England on the road in a tournament year.

Those previous games on the road were held in the north-east, north-west, Yorkshire, south coast and East Midlands of England.

It is therefore understood the FA wanted to hold a game in the West Midlands.

Molineux was available to host Saturday's game against Italy and this match against Hungary. A lot of stadiums are not available at this stage of the year as they are hosting events or having their pitch renovated.

The FA is also confident in hosting games at Molineux, having played men’s Under-21 fixtures there and women's matches in recent seasons.

The stadium also meets UEFA’s criteria for matches.

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