Around the grounds with Katherine Byrne

Stadiums are the homes of our favourite football clubs across the globe. They are a place where football fans can go to watch their team through all the highs and lows the season brings; it brings communities together. Let’s take a journey on 5 of my favourite stadiums and see what makes them so special to me:

Kenilworth Road:

With their sights firmly set on becoming a Premier League club, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to look at my beloved Kenilworth Road in more detail.

Built in 1905 the home of the Hatters has stood the test of time, having hosted both women’s and youth international games including the second leg of then 1984 Women’s Euros final.

In 1973 the Bobbers stand became all seated, and the rest of the stadium remained as terracing, just thirteen years later the ground became all seater, and the Bobbers stand had its seats pulled out and replaced with executive boxes. With the hopes of the Premier League looming the club are now looking at rebuilding a large majority of the Bobbers stand to accommodate the media requirements that come with the Premier League.

For anyone who’s been to Kenilworth Road, you will know it’s an old school stadium, surrounded by terrace houses. If you’re heading into the away end you’ll walk through a small alleyway at the side of the stadium, this is regularly compared to queuing up to go into someone’s house and then walking through their back garden to get into the stand!

I’ve been lucky enough to attend my fair share of games at the Kenny, and it’s hard to put into words how it makes you feel. There is an atmosphere that becomes almost a fortress. Despite the stadium only having 3 full stands with fans and a capacity of 10,073 the fans bring an atmosphere that can become the 12th man on a match day.

With sights set on a new stadium becoming the reality, it will be a sad day for not just Luton fans but football fans when Kenilworth Road is closed.

University Of Bolton Stadium- Formerly the Reebok Stadium

After moving away from the centre of Bolton at Burden Park in 1997, Bolton Wanderers had found their new home at the then Reebok Stadium. Fans had to come to terms with moving out of town to nearby Horwich which was not for everyone at first.

Having suffered the tragic loss of thirty-three fans in the Burden disaster, and injuries to hundreds more in 1946, Bolton Wanderers remained at Burden Park for another fifty years. The stadium had started to become dilapidated in the 80’s and a section of the terracing was then sold off for redevelopment as a supermarket to help pay off the clubs rising debts. The club were still in Division Three when the decision was made that the club would relocate to the Reebok Stadium, by time they moved in they were in the Premier League.

The stadium has hosted games from the not only the Premier League, League One, League Two and the UEFA Europa League but also concerts and Rugby World Cups too.

Structurally the stadium’s architecture has been designed in a similar way to the John Smith's Stadium, sometimes being compared to the home of Huddersfield. The addition of Bolton White Hotel has brought in a new stream of income for the club and gives fans a new experience of sleeping over in a stadium and waking up with a view of the pitch.

The club has overcome several trials and tribulations over recent years, the club was almost lost in 2019 when the club went into administration, however since the Football Ventures consortium saved them in August 2019 the fans have continued to support their club and have come out in numbers to support their team with attendance numbers remaining strong in league one with an average of 18,000.

I have had the privilege to work at this stadium and have been able to see how much the club means to the fans. Even now despite having renamed twice since Reebok, fans still refer to it as the Reebok stadium proving that branding can have a huge impact on stadium culture.

Wembley Stadium

With football fans commemorating 100 years of Wembley Stadium this year, it would not be right to do this top 5 stadiums without including it.

From the FA Cup final in 1923 to the most recent Women’s Euro’s final in 2022, Wembley has seen some iconic moments and has shown it’s not just a football stadium, but it is also adaptable as a concert host and so many more too!

The old Wembley opened in 1923 and stayed open until 2000 and was sadly demolished in 2003. The old Wembley was famous for its ‘Twin Towers’ which very a focal point of the original stadium and have in themselves become an iconic trademark for the Old Wembley.

Just some iconic moments at Old Wembley were England Winning the World Cup in 1966 and of course that infamous White Horse Final in 1923, as well as Matthew’s final and Live Aid just to name a few.

Since reopening in 2007, ‘New’ Wembley has seen its fair share of iconic moments such as the 2012 Olympics, where team GB’s first ever women’s team competed in an Olympics and played again Brazil at Wembley, and most recently the Lionesses taking winning the European Championships in a host tournament.

I have been lucky enough to experience Wembley Stadium several times, every time has been different. As the National stadium, I believe it gives everyone a fair chance as not many players have had the opportunity to play there, it gives everyone a chance, and fans something to look forward to each season whether it be in play-offs or cup finals. It gives fans a dream day out.

I’ve seen cup finals played here, but my favourite Wembley memory is the Lionesses winning the Euros last year, and I was lucky enough to be in the stands to see it. The atmosphere is something that cannot be replicated, and it will always be a memory to treasure.

I think Wembley is stadium for everyone, football fans, rugby fans, concert go-ers it is versatile and is a great stadium to experience.

Valley Parade

Valley Parade has been home to the Bantams since 1903, during this time the fans here have seen their team win an FA Cup and play across the different levels of the English Football League.

In 1985 a fatal fire broke out taking the lives of 56 spectators and injuring at least 265 more. This is in no doubt along with Burden Park and Hillsborough some of the most tragic incidents in football history to date. The stadium was due to be renovated at the end of that very season, but tragedy struck first.

Bradford then played their home games at Odsal Stadium, a rugby league ground in Bradford, Elland Road and Leeds Road until December 1986, while Valley Parade was redeveloped. Valley Parade then reopened in 1986 with a new stand and a refurbished KOP.

During my time at Bolton Wanderers, I was lucky enough to get to know Stephen Darby, who played for Bradford and Liverpool before joining Bolton. Sadly, he was diagnosed with MND and had to retire for playing. In the lead up to some fundraising we were doing at Bolton, Liverpool and Bradford organised a friendly to raise money for The Darby Rimmer Foundation. This was my first-time visiting Valley Parade.

It’s difficult to describe the atmosphere at the stadium that day, it wasn’t about the result on the pitch but raising money for a great cause, for both sets of fans to support their former player and come together for a fun afternoon. You could feel the love in the stadium that day and I was very privileged to be in that crowd.

I would love to revisit Valley Parade for a competitive game, I have heard the atmosphere is always great, and if that friendly is anything to go by I can only imagine what it’s like at a competitive game.

Bramall Lane

During the Women’s Euros last year, I was lucky enough to be able to visit some grounds I’d never been to for a domestic match before, Old Trafford, Leigh Sports Village and Brammall Lane.

Sheffield is a town of two clubs, and I would love to see the atmosphere here on a derby day as both sets of fans are passionate about their clubs. To attend a game here is on my list as at domestic level as I really enjoyed it.

The ground opened in 1855 and has originally a cricket ground for Yorkshire County Cricket club. In 1902 Brammall Lane would host it’s only test cricket match England VS Australia in which England lost.

The stadium was then occupied by Sheffield F.C until 1884, and then Sheffield United became the occupiers in 1889. The stadium has since hosted FA Cup semi-finals and women’s European Cup games alongside Sheffield’s domestic league games.

The ground itself is still quite an old school ground, but with a level of modern to it, the turnstiles are still the classic retro turnstiles but once inside the ground it feels and looks slightly more modern than the impression you get from the turnstiles.

The atmosphere inside the stadium was amazing, everyone was nervous if we would be able to make it to the finals, and thankfully we did! To be able to see new stadiums and to support my national team is something I have enjoyed, and i encourage anyone to go and support your local women’s team because you never know who the next Lioness super star will be!