Top 5 Considerable Football Stadiums In The UK

Football has been the most famous and admired sport in the UK since the 1860s. National football association conducts the overall supervision of football within their corresponding countries. There is currently no United Kingdom National football team as individual teams compete in international competition representing England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. 

With the world having much love for football, the need for better and bigger stadiums has always resulted in some iconic infrastructures, several of which have become the United Kingdom’s best stadiums. If you are unaware of where these beautiful stadiums are located, then this article will guide you about national and other UK’s best stadiums.

Before diving into top football stadiums in the UK. Let’s take a look at the national football stadiums their capacity and location.

National Stadiums of UK

Each of the UNITED KINGDOM team has a home ground known as “national stadium” in which the team plays the majority of their home games:

• England team followed by Wembley Stadium, in London have a capacity of 90,000 people.
• Northern Ireland play at Windsor Park, in Belfast have a capacity of 15,000.
• Scotland team plays football at Hampden Park, in Glasgow with a capacity of 51,866.
• Wales team plays at Millennium Stadium, in Cardiff with a capacity of 74,000.

The Millennium Stadium is further used for other sports as well it includes the Welsh rugby union team for its home internationals, whereas Windsor Park is a club ground owned by Linfield that the IFA leases and use by the Northern Ireland national team. Whenever for the event, the stadium is unavailable, then the national team usually plays at a club ground.

Top Football Stadiums in the UK

These are the top 7 football stadiums in the UK by capacity (all with capacity above 50,000).

Wembley Stadium:

Wembley Stadium was built in 2002-2007 in London which has a capacity of 90,000 people to sit and enjoy the game. The stadium conducts major football matches, it includes the home ground matches of the England national football team, and the FA Cup Final. Chelsea v Man United on 19 May 2007 was held in Wembley Stadium.

The total build cost for Wembley Stadium was  £974,000,000. Originally it was demolished in 2003, but the current version of the stadium was opened for public in 2007. Wembley was designed by HOK Sport and Fosters and Partners.

In 2014, Wembley Stadium entered into a six-year sponsorship agreement with mobile provider EE Limited, under which it provides technology and infrastructure services for the venue.

Old Trafford:

Old Trafford was built in 1909-1910 in Manchester which has 75,635 seats for people. Moreover Wolves v Grimsby on 25 March 1939 was held in Old Trafford. Old Trafford is a famous stadium in all over the world. This stadium also has a museum and offers tours.

The Old Trafford pitch is surrounded by four covered all-seater stands, known as the Sir Alex Ferguson (North), East, Sir Bobby Charlton (South) and West Stands. Each stand has at least two tiers, with the exception of the Sir Bobby Charlton Stand, which only has one tier due to construction restrictions. The lower tier of each stand is split into Lower and Upper sections, the Lower sections having been converted from terracing in the early 1990s.

Principality Stadium:

Principality Stadium is in Cardiff, built-in 1997-1999 and holds the capacity of 74,500 people. Event Wales v Italy on 16 October 2002 was held in Principality Stadium of Cardiff. It is also named as the Millennium Stadium. Nowadays it is famous for rugby matches. Its total build cost is £121,000,000.

The superstructure of the stadium is based around four 90.3-meter (296 ft) masts. The stadium was built from 56,000 tonnes of concrete and steel and has 124 hospitality suites and 7 hospitality lounges, 22 bars, 7 restaurants, 17 first aid points, 12 escalators, and 7 lifts. 

The stadium has 7 gates for access to the site; Gate 1 is from the River Walkthrough Castle Street (to the north), Gates 2 and 3 are via Westgate Street (to the east), Gate 4 is for Security only also via Westgate Street, Gate 5 is via Park Street (to the south) and Gates 6 and 7 are through the Millennium Plaza (to the south).

Celtic Park:

Celtic Park in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, Scotland, is the home ground of the Celtic Football Club. it was built in 1892 and can hold the capacity of 60,411 people. Celtic v Rangers event was held on 01 January 1938 in Celtic Park.

Celtic Park was an oval stadium but has been constructed to a rectangular stadium. It is intended to create an enclosed and intimidating atmosphere for big games. The ground is split into four geographic sections, officially known as the North, Jock Stein (West), Lisbon Lions (East) and Main (South) Stand. 

The North, East, and West stands form a consecutive two-tier loop. The two end stands each have a capacity of 13,000, while the North Stand holds 27,000. The Main Stand holds just under 8,000, giving a total capacity of 60,411. It received 60% of the votes when BBC Radio Five Live conducted a poll in 2002 to find the favorite sports venue in the United Kingdom.

The Emirates:

The Emirates is one of the most famous stadiums in England which was built in 2004-2006 and holds the capacity of 60,260 people. The other name for this stadium is the Arsenal stadium. Arsenal clubs were first who join the football league from the South of England.

Aside from sporting uses, the Emirates has been used as a music venue which increases the maximum capacity to 72,000. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band became the first band to play a concert at the stadium on 30 May 2008.