Rugby is back and Twickenham stadium has been transformed to celebrate it.

The home of Rugby has been turned into the largest outdoor painting ever created featuring three of rugby's very brightest stars.

Harlequins and England forward Joe Marler is joined by Saracens' Maro Itoje, and Sale Sharks' Rugby World Cup winner Faf de Klerk.

Rugby finally restarts just down the road at The Stoop, home of Harlequins, when Joe Marler's side take on Sale Sharks.

The portrait took 100 hours to plan and a further 24 to install and was created by a team of eight artists.

A special computer programme was created so the artwork matched the near 7,000 square metre pitch and nearly 1280 litres of biodegradable pitch marker paint were used for the huge installation.

Around 150,000 passengers will be able to see the huge portrait when flying out of Heathrow Airport.

CEO of Premiership Rugby Darren Childs described the difficulty of restarting the seson.

He said: "We are so excited to restart the Gallagher Premiership Rugby season, and it's been a herculean effort to get here.

"The pitch portrait is such a spectacular way to celebrate the restart of the Gallagher Premiership Rugby season and let the fans know that rugby is back on our screens again.

"We won't take our eyes off the ball when it comes to being safe and secure in the fight against Covid-19, and all precautions are being taken to allow our players to be back doing what they love most – playing rugby."

British artist John Lundberg, who oversaw the portrait said: "I refer to what I make as conceptual art. When you view the art work up close you can't really tell what it is but then when you see it from a vantage point it comes together and creates a complete image.

"It's an incredible honour to create this piece to celebrate the return of rugby. It's been such a tough time for sport and many industries, and it's nice to be a part of bringing this sport back to the people who love it".

You can read more about the return of Harlequins and Premiership Rugby HERE