Former rugby giants have secured a site to build a new 28,000 seat stadium in Kent.

Wasps has confirmed today that the club has a 10-year option on land in Swanley, near Dartford.

The former top-flight side – who went into administration in 2022 and were relegated from the division as a result – are looking to relocate to the county from the Midlands.

Club owner Christopher Holland told BBC Sport it is all part of the club's “aspiration” to return to a professional outfit.

He said: "It is rewarding that we have managed to achieve this milestone with the support of key stakeholders.

"It brings our aspiration of a new home in the region closer and hopefully demonstrates our determination to recover Wasps sustainably."

The club has not confirmed, however, where this land is.

KentOnline has approached Wasps for further information.

Previously, the club had asked Sevenoaks council to include an allocation for a 28,000-seat stadium at one of two locations near Swanley – either Pedham Place Golf Club, or nearby Petham Court Farm.

The first location is also in the sights of housing developers, Gladman and Ramac, who want to build a 2,500-home garden village there.

The second location is currently agricultural land.

There had been considerable protest from residents, particularly in Farningham and Eynsford, against the proposals – mainly on traffic grounds.

However, some did welcome the plans – which were subject to consultation – as a chance to bring more sporting opportunities and jobs to the area.

Established in 1867, the Wasps were a founding member of the Rugby Football Union and went on to win the Premiership title six times and the European Cup twice.

But in recent times the club has fallen into financial difficulties and went into administration in October 2022.

However, the assets and name were bought by HALO22, a company owned by Christopher Holland, a previous non-executive director of the club, and since then a small team has been focused on building the recovery of the club and seeing its entry back into the rugby union league.

Originally based in London, they were more recently at High Wycombe and then Coventry, and they say that Swanley will be sufficiently near to their predominantly London fan base to be a good place to relocate.

The club wants to build a new multi-purpose stadium to seat up to 28,000 people, which it says when not hosting rugby matches could be used for concerts and other events.

In addition, the site would include a hotel for visitors, training facilities to include four rugby football pitches, a gym, a barn for equipment, changing rooms, a medical centre and a medical recovery suite.

The club also wants a sports research and development centre, supporting offices, a restaurant and a players’ lounge.

In addition, there is an ambition for the Lawn Tennis Association to share the site with a new indoor and outdoor tennis facility.

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The club believes its complex could be squeezed into Pedham Place as part of the wider mixed-use masterplan, or it could be located on the other side of the M25 at Petham Court Farm.

The club believes its complex could be squeezed into Pedham Place as part of the wider mixed-use masterplan, or it could be located on the other side of the M25 at Petham Court Farm.

The first stage of any development is to persuade Sevenoaks District Council to allocate the sites for development in its next Local Plan Review.

Both the hopes for a stadium and a garden village near Swanley took a knock recently when National Highways said the proposals had been based on the assumption of planning improvements to Junction 3 of the M25, which it said might never happen.

The authority said the effect of any development on the highways network remained untested.