Highbury
Arsenal Stadium, colloquially referred to as “Highbury” and home to Arsenal F.C. from 1913 – 2006, is without a doubt one of the most iconic stadiums to have ever been built. The stadium was originally constructed in 1913 in an effort to ameliorate the fortunes of a struggling Gunners side, that, in the 1912-13 season, were relegated from Division One for the only time in the clubs’ history. The stadium was hurriedly erected over the course of the summer of 1913 on the grounds of a local college and was redeveloped several times during its history to facilitate capacity expansion and safer seating. At its peak, the stadium housed 73,000 people and regularly hosted crowds of over 60,000. Interestingly, the move from Highbury to The Emirates does not necessarily tell a story of success, as in the decade before the move to The Emirates, Arsenal won three League titles and four FA Cups, but in the decade after, they won just two FA Cups. This may lead you to wonder, if Highbury was so iconic, why was it demolished? Well, it is due to the fact that the local community blocked any further ventures to expand the stadium, which led to a drop in matchday revenue, and thus, Arsenal opted to construct an entirely new stadium. However, it may please you to hear that, instead of fully demolishing the old stadium, it was incorporated into a housing development called Highbury Square which resembles the old stadium in its layout and design.
Upton Park
The Boleyn Ground, which was almost universally known as Upton Park, was home to West Ham United from 1904 – 2016 and also briefly housed Charlton Athletic in the early 1990s. The stadium underwent several expansions, the most major of which occurred in 2000 when the West Stand was replaced by a 15,000-seat stand named the “Doctor Martens Stand”. These expansions led to Upton Park having a peak capacity of 35,000. West Ham’s plans to move to a new stadium were long in the works before the eventual move to the Olympic stadium, with talks of a move beginning in 2006, but not materializing until 2013 when West Ham finally won the Olympic stadium bidding process. In a fairy-tale ending to the stadium’s long history, Winston Reid scored in the 80th minute to win 3-2 against Manchester United in the stadium’s final game. The driving force behind the change of stadium and eventual demolition of Upton Park was the dream of West Ham becoming a world-class side in a world-class stadium. However, this dream has yet to be realized, leaving many disgruntled fans wondering whether the move was all for nothing, while a block of flats emerges from where their beloved stadium once stood.
Estadio Vicente Calderón
The Vicente Calderón Stadium was the home of Atlético Madrid for just over half a century, from its construction in 1966 until 2017. Although the first match was played in the stadium in 1966, the stadium was not actually completed until 1970 due to funding problems. At the time of its completion, it had the largest all-seater capacity of any stadium in Europe. In the 50 years that they played there, Atlético enjoyed success, winning the La Liga five times and the Copa del Rey seven times. However, the stadium was not just used for league football matches or even football at all. Aside from hosting games in the 1982 world cup, it has been used for several music events, including a sold-out Michael Jackson concert. Another notable feature of the stadium was that the M-30 dual carriageway passed directly beneath one of the main stands. The reason for the move by Atlético Madrid away from the Vicente Calderón was simply that they built a more modern stadium with a higher capacity (68000 vs 55,000) called the Metropolitano. Like many of the other stadiums on the list, the land where this magnificent construction once stood is currently being developed into housing and shopping centres.
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium served as the venue for many important football matches for 78 years and was once described by the Brazilian great, Pelé, as “the cathedral of football. Originally, after its construction in 1923, the stadium was seen by many as a financial sinkhole, with one of the first owners of the stadium declaring bankruptcy due to the financial unviability of the stadium. However, over time it bloomed into the stadium that we all know and love. Rather than being attached to any one club, Wembley Stadium acted as the host of many high-profile matches, including the 1966 World Cup Final where England emerged victorious, and the stadium almost maxed out its 100,000-person capacity. The original Wembley Stadium was demolished to make way for a new and improved Wembley Stadium which is the one that currently sits in the heart of London today on the same site as the original stadium. Unfortunately, the iconic twin towers of the old Wembley Stadium were not preserved, leading to uproar from the general public at the time.
White Hart Lane
White Hart Lane was originally constructed after the collapse of the refreshment stand at Tottenham Hotspur’s original playing ground when supporters jumped on its roof. Understandably, this prompted the club to begin looking for a new ground. In 1898, the club settled on a piece of land behind the White Hart pub – thus White Hart Lane was born. White Hart Lane served as the stadium for the side Tottenham Hotspur from 1899 until its demolition in 2017 to make space for the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. White Hart Lane not only housed Tottenham Hotspur games but also hosted international games and even the occasional boxing match. The decision was taken to replace White Hart Lane for the sole reason that the capacity of the stadium lagged significantly behind that of the other major teams in the Premier League with it holding a mere 36,000 people. Where White Hart Lane once stood, the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium now stands with an increased capacity of 63,000.
Estádio das Antas
The Estádio das Antas was the longest-serving stadium of FC Porto and was operational from 1952 until 2004. Initially, the capacity of the stadium was around 65,000, however, by 1986, this number had grown to 95,000 after the removal of athletics tracks and the lowering of the pitch. Gradually, as the stadium moved towards becoming an all-seater, the capacity of the stadium decreased, reaching an all-time low of 55,000 in 1997. As well as acting as the stadium for FC Porto, the Estádio das Antas also hosted Portuguese national team games – mainly in the qualifying rounds of international competitions. At the end of the 20th century, due to FC Porto’s growing need for a newer, more modern stadium caused in part by the then-upcoming 2004 Euros, it was decided that a new stadium would be built at the same site. Shortly after the demolition of the Estádio das Antas, the construction of the new Estádio do Dragão was completed.
Maine Road
As surprising as it may seem, Manchester City have not always been owned by Saudi oil giants and their comparatively modest old stadium, Maine Road, reflects this. The construction of Maine Road was driven by the fact that the previous stadium, Hyde Park, could no longer be expanded and one of the stands had been seriously damaged by a fire. Interestingly, this stadium holds the record for the highest attendance for an English football club playing at their own stadium. This record occurred in 1934 when 85,000 fans attended Manchester City vs Stoke City in the FA cup. Expansion plans were suggested but plans for the construction of a new stadium, the Etihad, were favoured over these. This led to the demolition of the stadium in 2003 and the subsequent relocation of the Manchester City club to the Etihad stadium. A housing development is now located on the original site of the stadium, as well as a public art display commemorating the stadium.
Camp de Les Corts
Everyone has heard of Camp Nou, the home of Spanish giants, FC Barcelona, but fewer people are aware of the precursor to this stadium – the Camp de Les Corts. This was the original home of FC Barcelona, constructed in 1922, where FC Barcelona won their first La Liga and the stadium acted as the nursing ground for the Barcelona of today. Due to the exponential growth of FC Barcelona in the late 1940s, FC Barcelona outgrew the stadium, despite several previous expansions leading to the stadium reaching a final capacity of 60,000. This led to plans being made for the infamous Camp Nou. Currently, a park by the name of Parc de Les Corts is situated on the site where the stadium once was.
Stadio delle Alpi
The Stadio delle Alpi was a joint stadium between Juventus FC and Torino FC from 1990 until 2006. The stadium was originally built in 1990 to host matches for the 1990 World Cup and was built to have a capacity of 69,000. The construction of the stadium took just two years due to the use of prefabricated concrete. Originally, the stadium was meant to also be used for athletics events, however, it lacked a warm-up track and so was never used for any major athletics event. Eventually, Juventus decided that they wanted a stadium of their own that was not shared with another club and so the Juventus Stadium was constructed where the Stadio delle Alpi once stood after its demolition.
Estadio Gasómetro
The Estadio Gasómetro in Argentina was the home of the club San Lorenzo de Almagro (one of the “Cinco Grandes” teams in Argentina) and was constructed in 1916 with a capacity of 75,000. Intriguingly, the nickname of the stadium was Gasómetro, due to the fact that the exterior resembled a gas holder which was apparently very common at the time. Despite the large capacity of the stadium, it was so popular that the attendance of the stadium frequently surpassed the capacity. The old stadium also hosted the Argentinian national team on several occasions. Unfortunately, the debt of San Lorenzo grew in the 1970s and the club was forced to sell the land in 1979. The land eventually ended up in the hands of the Carrefour supermarket chain, leading to the construction of a supermarket on the land.
