61 replies to this topic

[Rafa]

olympic games welcome back home..i mean fifa world cup..welcome back home...no wait..welcome to where it all started..

[arwebb]

Anfield, Liverpool

The name may be the same, the area familiar, but the stadium will be completely different. The current Anfield ground, which has staged football for more than 125 years and been home to Liverpool Football Club since 1892, will be replaced by a new, 60,000 capacity stadium which would host one of the quarter-finals.

Planning permission for the new ground was granted in May 2004, and discussions remain ongoing to raise the necessary funding for the project.

The current stadium, which houses 45,000 spectators, will be redeveloped for community facilities. Existing memorials to legendary managers Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley, as well as the 96 victims of the Hillsborough stadium tragedy of April 1989 will be incorporated within the new development, as well as a memorial garden, remembering those people who have had their ashes scattered on the pitch at the current ground.

New Anfield

Mo Rush, on Jul 23 2006, 12:35 AM, said:

olympic games welcome back home..i mean fifa world cup..welcome back home...no wait..welcome to where it all started..

Forgive me if I'm being thick here, but what's your point?

Ashburton Grove, London

The new home of Arsenal opened its doors in July 2006. The £390 million, 60,000 capacity Emirates Stadium has been built just a short distance away from the club's former home at Highbury. The first game at the new ground saw Arsenal face Dutch giants Ajax in a testamonial for retiring Dutch star Dennis Bergkamp.

The stadium will stage five matches if England are chosen as 2018 hosts, culminating with a quarter-final.

Dennis Bergkamp testimonial photos

[arwebb]

St James' Park, Newcastle

There are few more fanatical areas of enthusiasm for football in the world than the north-east of England. And if football is a religion, St James' Park is its cathedral in Newcastle. More than 52,000 people pack this historic ground every matchday. And, having cheered the exploits of legends such as Jackie Milburn, Malcolm MacDonald and Alan Shearer down the years, Newcastle will once again delight in the exploits of new legends come 2018.

Football has been played at the site since 1880. The ground was substantially redeveloped following a takeover of the club by businessman Sir John Hall in early 1992. The initial result was a fully enclosed, 37,000 capacity ground. Then, when plans for a new 55,000 capacity stadium in nearby Leazes Park fell through, capacity was further increased to the current 52,387 by adding new seating to the Gallowgate End and Sir John Hall Stand.

Remarkably, St James' Park did not stage games when England last hosted the World Cup in 1966, because of a dispute between Newcastle United and planning officials over proposed redevelopments. Games were subsequently held at Roker Park in Sunderland and Ayresome Park in Middlesbrough, both venues which have now been lost to football. Newcastle gained some payback in 1996, when it was one of the eight stadia which hosted matches in that year's European Championship. In 2018, the ground would stage five games, including a second round tie.

Modern St James' Park

[Rafa]

[arwebb]

Villa Park, Birmingham

England's second city will stage the World Cup's third and fourth placed play-off. A venue for football as the home of Aston Villa since 1897, Villa Park has staged more than 20 FA Cup semi-finals and was the host stadium for the last ever European Cup Winners Cup final in May 1999. when Italian side Lazio defeated Real Mallorca of Spain.

The ground, which hosted quarter-final matches when England staged both the 1966 World Cup and the 1996 European Championship, will see capacity increased from the current 42,573 to around 51,000. This will be achieved by filling in the open corners alongside the North Stand. Planning permission has already been granted for the development.

Villa Park

[Aronious]

Is there room around St.James to achieve such a development?

[arwebb]

Stadium of Light, Sunderland

Widely regarded as one of the best stadia in Europe, Sunderland's Stadium of Light was opened in July 1997 with a match between the Wearside club and Dutch giants Ajax. The stadium, which had an initial capacity of 42,000, was later extended to its current capacity of 49,000.

The ground, whose name is connected to the area's long industrial past and replaced the former Roker Park, staged its first England international in 2000, when Belgium were the visitors. Three years later, Turkey were the first visitors to the stadium for a competitive international, a game which England won 2-0 on the road to Euro 2004 qualification.

Should England be chosen to be the 2018 host nation, the Stadium of Light will host five matches, including a second round tie.

Stadium of Light

Mo Rush, I haven't heard of any further expansion plans at Newcastle.

[arwebb]

City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester

Known to many as Eastlands, the City of Manchester Stadium was originally built as the centrepiece of the city's successful bid to stage the 2002 Commonwealth Games. Then with a capacity of 38,000, the stadium staged the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, track and field athletics and the Rugby Sevens events.

Following the Games, the running track was removed, the pitch level lowered by 10 metres and new seating added. The result was the current 48,000 seater stadium which has been home of Manchester City Football Club since 2003. The stadium has also hosted England internationals, the opening game of the 2005 Women's European Championship, rugby league internationals and concerts by the likes of Oasis and the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. In 2018, the ground would host group games and one of the second round ties.

City of Manchester Stadium

[arwebb]

aaronaugi1, on Jul 23 2006, 02:09 PM, said:

Is there room around St.James to achieve such a development?

I don't think there is, hence the investigations of relocating away from St James' Park a few years ago. Besides which, I'm fairly sure that, if Newcastle United could develop the ground in the way that picture suggests, they would, and they would fill it, given the passion of the support up there.

[arwebb]

Hillsborough, Sheffield

Another of English football's great traditional venues, Hillsborough has been the home of Sheffield Wednesday since 1899. The ground has hosted 28 FA Cup semi-finals in its history, as well as matches at both the 1966 World Cup and Euro 96.

But, it was this ground which also witnessed the game's darkest ever day. On Saturday April 15th 1989, during an FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest, 96 Liverpool supporters were crushed to death in the Leppings Lane End of the ground. It remains the worst stadium disaster this country has ever seen, and a memorial to the victims stands outside the ground.

But it was that tragedy which indirectly gave the game in England the spectacular modern stadia it has today. Following the events of that day, Lord Justice Taylor, later to be made Lord Chief Justice, called for all stadia of clubs in the top two divisions to become all-seater, sparking rebuilding work at grounds up and down the country. Hillsborough was no exception, and the ground is now a modern all-seater stadium, with a capacity of just under 40,000 and its historic character maintained. Work will be undertaken to install the extra seats necessary for World Cup matches.

Hillsborough, Sheffield