Advice for taking my autistic son to our first England rugby match

[RugbyQueen]

I’m taking my 11 year old to see the England rugby game at Liverpool on Saturday. I’m not a sports fan so never visited stadiums or watched national/international matches. Has anyone got any advice re what to take or wear? Obviously he’s got his England rugby shirt, it looks like it’s an outside match, I’m assuming there’s no rules on clothes, but that it’ll likely be warm due to the number of people?
am I ok to take a full bag with drinks/snacks/fidget toys etc? Child is autistic so I’m hoping to over prepare in case there’s issues with crowds or noise. I’ll take sound cancelling headphones. Is there anything else you’d suggest? Will his access card or sunflower lanyard help with the queues? Is there likely to be a disability entrance?

any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Bag checks may not allow drinks snacks to be brought into the venue.
have you contacted the venue about your sons disability. If it’s not a long sleeve rugby top won’t be suitable

I'm a football rather than a rugby fan, but I would not take an autistic child into a match stadium unless you are very confident that he will cope with crowds and noise.

If you are not a sports fan it's very difficult to convey the atmosphere that there is at a live event. It's absolutely overwhelming and emotional even to people who are used to it;

Look up Youtube. Watch England football fans singing Wonderwall to the team after the match and picture yourself and your child in the stands there. It will be a similar atmospere at an England rugby game, but with more English fans there. It will be noisy and chaotic.

Check with the stadium - some have a disability entrance, some will even have a sensory stand or room where you can watch the match but in a quieter environment. I don’t know the Liverpool stadium at all so you’ll need to check.

Liverpool isn't a normal stadium for an England match so I've never been there, but for all the other places I've watched rugby:
Wear whatever you like
Unlike football, there's no segregation of fans as everyone is pretty civilized and is just there to enjoy good rugby
There will definitely be noise (although presumably it won't be as bad as places with a closed roof like Cardiff)
Expect to encounter a few intoxicated exuberant fans
Bags will be searched on the way in- nothing big or heavy or pointy is allowed.

I've no knowledge of what happens for people with disabilities I afraid, sorry. But enjoy it - England had some good moments of brilliance on Saturday against the Springboks, and Fiji aren't as strong so the balance of play should be more even.

Stadiums have rules on bag size, type and snacks /drinks so check on the stadium website. Never had issues with long queues for rugby myself, there is a disability entrance but it will be to the specific section for wheelchairs, it will be easier to go through the gate for your tickets if they are not in the disability section (look on Google street view so you know where to go in advance.) yes to headphones but do prep him that it will be noisy, a bit boisterous (in a nice way, polite crowd at rugby). You don’t say which stadium so I can’t help further

How is he with turnstyles and narrow openings? My son can't manage the turnstyles at Murrayfield because they are very narrow with high brick on either side which is quite claustrophobic for an NT person, never mind a very anxious ND child.

We contacted the ground and were reassured that there was no issue with him using the gates for people with disabilities.

To be honest, he refuses to go to all games now because the noise is too much for him which is a shame. Ear defenders might be something to pack/have him wear round his neck if that's likely to be an issue.

Do check re: bag size and whether there are any concessions for customers with additional support needs.

Thanks everyone. He manages busy spaces like shows and airports, and isn’t usually triggered by noise. The headphones are just in case. we’ve been to multiple local matches so he’s used to the drinking and swearing. I’ll check about the disability entrance and possible sensory room. Thank you!

I’ll take a small bag, and snacks we don’t mind losing if there’s an issue with them. We mostly use mints and chewing gum for regulation but I’m guessing they won’t be an issue

thanks for the help!