RFU chief Francis Baron was keen to help the Pumas © Getty Images

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Players/Officials: Francis Baron

Teams: England

England are set to play next year's first summer Test match against Argentina in England after receiving a request for financial help from the Pumas. The RFU plan to stage the match away from Twickenham providing the plan receives sufficient approval from the IRB.

"Argentina feel that playing one of their two Tests against England in England would generate urgently needed funds to invest in their squads, in particular the Pumas A team due to take part in the Churchill Cup in North America at the same time," said RFU chief executive Francis Baron. "We are keen to assist Argentina and will take the opportunity of playing the match away from Twickenham to aid rugby development in the regions."

No date has been confirmed as yet for the match, although it is likely to be in early June, and the RFU are also in the process of evaluating stadium options for the match.

The Pumas would remain the home team in the fixture and therefore the Union Argentina de Rugby would benefit from related income streams such as gate receipts and merchandise.

It would not be the first time England have played an away Test on home soil. During the construction of the Millennium Stadium, Wales moved their Five Nations matches to Wembley and famously beat England 32-31 in April, 1999.

The RFU have often been criticised for not taking England on the road - particularly for fixtures which do not attract sell-out crowds to Twickenham - as they did during the World Cup qualifying campaign in November 1998, when Clive Woodward's team played Holland and Italy at the McAlpine Stadium in Huddersfield.

Argentina would provide far sterner opposition and attract potentially bigger crowds than either of those two, having beaten England at Twickenham in 2006 as they built towards a third-place finish in last year's World Cup. And the request from the UAR provides the opportunity for the RFU to take England outside of London.

Potential venues for the match could include Old Trafford, which staged England's 25-8 defeat to New Zealand in 1997 and is used for hosting the Super League Grand Final. Across Manchester, Eastlands may also be an option. Sale were planning to use the 48,000-seat stadium if they qualified for the semi-finals of the Heineken Cup in 2006.

Wembley recently staged the Barbarians' 1908 Olympic centenary game against Australia, while Coventry's Ricoh Arena, Leicester's Walkers Stadium and Nottingham Forest's City Ground have all hosted Heineken Cup rugby.

Argentina finished third in the 2007 Rugby World Cup and there have been moves within the IRB to aid their development. At the 2007 Woking conference, the IRB agreed to increase their number of Test matches against major opposition and find a way for the Pumas to join the Tri-Nations.

Argentina need the increased funds from hosting the Test in England to help develop a professional structure that would underpin any potential inclusion in the Tri-Nations.

Domestic rugby in Argentina remains staunchly amateur but the UAR are attempting to produce a professional tier through high-performance units, with players competing in pan-American competitions and the Churchill Cup.