| Hillsborough | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Hillsborough Stadium |
| Former names | Owlerton Stadium (until 1914) |
| Location | Owlerton, Sheffield, England S6 1SW |
| Broke ground | 1899 |
| Opened | 2 September 1899 |
| Owner | Sheffield Wednesday F.C. Ltd |
| Surface | Grass (with undersoil heating system[1]) |
| Capacity | 39,812 |
| Field dimensions | 116 x 71 yards (approx 106 x 65 m) |
| Tenants | |
| Sheffield Wednesday (1899–present) | |
Hillsborough Stadium (commonly called just Hillsborough) is the home of Sheffield Wednesday football club, Sheffield, England. Football has been played at the ground since it was opened on 2 September 1899, when Wednesday moved from their original ground at Olive Grove. Today it is a 39,812 capacity all-seater stadium,[2] making it the largest stadium in the city. It is also the largest club stadium in England outside of the Premier League. The vast majority of the seats are covered. It is located in the Sheffield suburb of Owlerton, but takes its name from the parliamentary constituency in which it lies.
The stadium was known as Owlerton until becoming Hillsborough in 1914 following ground improvements – hence the fact that Sheffield Wednesday are commonly known as the Owls. It was around the time of this change that a wall collapsed during a match at the stadium and injured 75 spectators, although nobody was killed.[3]
On 15 April 1989, the ground was the scene of one of the worst sporting tragedies of all time when 96 Liverpool fans were crushed to death in an FA Cup semi-final in the infamous Hillsborough disaster. This prompted a series of improvements to safety at the ground and at other stadiums around the country.
Although the ground has received little investment since Euro 1996, it is still regarded as "a beautiful ground oozing character."[4] It has two large separate two tiered stands and two large single tiered stands, all of which are covered. All four stands are of a similar size in terms of capacity, but with the South stand being the largest and the West stand (used for away fans) the smallest. Only one corner of the ground is filled, between the West and North Stands. This area, known as the North West terrace, is uncovered and is only used for visiting supporters when the West stand upper and lower tiers are full. On the other corner of the West stand is an electronic scoreboard.
Plans by the club for a £22 million renovation of the stadium and expansion to 44,825 have been approved by Sheffield City Council Planning Department with an aim to hosting FIFA World Cup 2018 matches. The stadium has been listed as FIFA's preferred Sheffield ground. The ground has previously played host to World Cup and European Championship football in 1966 and 1996 respectively.
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During the 1898–99 season Sheffield Wednesday were told that the land rented at Olive Grove would be needed for railway expansions.[5] They were allowed to remain there for the rest of that season but had to find a new ground for the next season. Several locations were considered but fell through for various reasons. An alternative was offered by the Midland Railway Company but it did not meet the requirements of the club.
Finally James Willis Dixon of Hillsborough House, owner of the Silversmiths James Dixon & Sons, offered a 10-acre (40,000 m2) site at Owlerton, a sparsely populated area of land to the northwest of the city. The land was part of the Hillsborough House estate which was being sold off by the Dixon's. It was successfully bought for £5,000 GBP plus costs. Soil was dumped at both ends of the ground to level out the ground which was initially meadowland covered with dandelions. The 2,000 capacity stand at Olive Grove was then transported to the new site and was joined by a newly constructed 3,000 capacity stand for the start of the next season.[6] The first match to be played was on 2 September 1899 against Chesterfield. The match was kicked off by the Lord Mayor of Sheffield William Clegg, himself a former Wednesday player. It was a Chesterfield player, Herbert Munday, who scored the first goal at the new stadium but Wednesday came back to win the game 5–1. Despite the location of the ground several miles outside the city boundaries and a poor public transport service the new ground averaged 3,000 supporters for the first three months.[5][7]
The ground was known as the Owlerton Stadium until 1914, when it was renamed Hillsborough to coincide with a series of ground improvements. The ground took its new name from the newly created parliamentary constituency.[2] The ground proved to be lucky for Wednesday with the first 8 years proving to be their most successful so far. They included their first league wins in the 1902–03 and 1903–04. This was followed by a second FA Cup in 1907.
The first FA Cup semi-final to be held at the stadium was a replay between West Bromwich Albion and Blackburn Rovers on 3 April 1912.[8] A crowd of 20,050 saw an extra time goal give West Brom the win. This was followed by its first international on 10 April 1920.[9] A match between England and Scotland was watched by 25,536. The game ended with England winning 5–4. The following two seasons saw Hillsborough host two more FA Cup semi-finals, both between Preston North End and Tottenham Hotspur.[10] The crowds for these matches were 43,320 and 49,282 respectively. The highest ever attendance was 72,841 on 17 February 1934 for an FA Cup 5th round game against Manchester City.
After the end of the 1912–13 season a record profit was announced by the club.[11] The money was invested in a replacement for the Olive Grove stand on the south side of the stadium. The banking on the Spion Kop was also increased in size. The new south stand was completed in time for the first round of the FA Cup on 1 October 1913 against Notts County. It cost £18,000 and included 5,600 seats plus terracing at the front. New offices, dressing rooms, refreshment rooms and a billiard room were also part of the new stand. The second round tie went to a replay on 4 February 1914, which was held in front of a record home crowd of 43,000.[11] However the match was remembered for the collapse of the new retaining wall at the Penistone Road end. It caused 70 injuries and caused the match to be suspended while the casualties were taken to the infirmary.
During the post war era Hillsborough rose to be one of the top stadiums in the country. It hosted a total of 27 FA Cup semi-finals. In 1966, the stadium was selected as one of the venues for the Football World Cup, hosting first round matches involving West Germany, Argentina, Switzerland, and Spain, as well as a quarterfinal in which West Germany beat Uruguay 4–0.
Demolition of the North Stand began in 1960 and work began on a new £150,000 stand.[12] The new stand, designed by local firm Husband & Co, was 360 feet (110 m) in length. It was only the second stand in the country, after one at Scunthorpe United's Old Showground, to be built with a cantilever roof and the first to run the full length of the pitch.[13] It was opened on 23 August 1961 by Stanley Rous, secretary of the Football Association. The 10,008 capacity all-seater stand almost doubled the seating capacity of Hillsborough from 9,000 to 16,000.
The ground held its first national cup final in 1977 when it played host to Everton and Aston Villa for a Football League Cup final replay. A crowd of 52,135 watched a 1–1 draw leading to another replay. At the end of the 1980s the ground held three successive FA Cup semis ending with the tragic events that changed the nature of football grounds throughout the country.
On 15 April 1989, the ground was the scene of one of the worst sporting tragedies of all time when 96 Liverpool fans were crushed to death in an FA Cup semi-final in the Hillsborough disaster.
This prompted a series of improvements to safety at the ground and other grounds across the country; the terraced stands were converted to all seated accommodation over the following four years, and the fences around the pitch were replaced with low safety-barricades to allow incursion onto the playing surface in case of emergency.
Outside the ground, near the main entrance on Parkside Road, is a memorial to the 96 fans that lost their lives at Hillsborough in 1989, during the FA Cup Semi Final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest. The memorial was unveiled on the tenth anniversary of the tragedy, 15 April 1999. It reads: In memory of the 96 men, women, and children who tragically died and the countless people whose lives were changed forever. FA Cup semi-final Liverpool v Nottingham Forest. 15th April 1989. "You’ll never walk alone.". The memorial suffered minor damage in the Hillsborough Flood; however, it was easily and swiftly repaired.
In 1996, Hillsborough was host to several fixtures at the Euro 96 competition and in particular was host to the Danish squad. The Danish fans endeared themselves to the local population with their fanatical support and exemplary behaviour, and were particularly popular amongst local landlords—a number of Sheffield public houses had to order emergency supplies of beer and cigarettes
In 1997 Hillsborough hosted its first major domestic match since the disaster. The League Cup Final replay between Leicester City and Middlesbrough was played at the ground. It was won by Leicester by one goal to nil. Later the same year Middlesbrough returned to Hillsborough for an FA Cup semi-final replay in which they beat Chesterfield by three goals to nil.
The record attendance since the ground was made all-seated was on 2 February 2000 in a Premier League game against Manchester United and was watched by 39,640 fans. In recent years average attendances at Hillsborough have remained high despite Wednesday's relatively poor league position:
On 25 June 2007, the River Don burst its banks during a period of severe weather in the area, and the whole ground was flooded with several feet of water. The changing rooms, restaurants and kitchens and boardroom were all flooded, as well as the ticket office and superstore; many local houses were also affected. The clean-up effort took months; however, Sheffield Wednesday's fixtures were only slightly affected as the floods occurred in the off-season. The stadium suffered millions of pounds of damage, and a memorial to the floods was unveiled on 25 June 2008 under the South Stand.
The original North Stand was built between 1899 and 1903. It was unique at the time, as it had facilities for both men and women, and a slight semi - circle which gave a good view of the pitch at any angle (though the supporting pillars did cause some obstruction. The area at the front of the stand was a grass bank until the early 1900s when it was made into a terrace. The stand was ajoined to the original North West Terrace untill the late 1950s when the club decided to build a brand new stand. The current North Stand was opened in the early 1960s which runs along the long north edge of the pitch, and was the second football stand in Britain to have a cantilever roof (thus amongst some fans, it is known as "the cantilever"). It was however the first in the country to run the entire length of the pitch; the first cantilever stand in English football at Scunthorpe United's Old Show Ground only covered the centre of the pitch. Following the formal opening of the stand in August 1961, a celebration match was played on 22 October 1961 when Wednesday met Santos of Brazil with their new star Pele in the team. Pele's goal helped Santos to a 4–2 win. When opened, the stand held 10,000 but the capacity has been reduced more recently to make room for disabled spectators and also to widen the exit aisles for safety reasons. Hillsborough is the only football ground to be mentioned in Nikolaus Pevsner's Buildings of England due to this stand. At the time of opening the stand was the best new stand to be built since Arsenal's East Stand at Highbury in the 1930s, and it still is a fabulous stand.
The West stand houses the visiting supporters at Hillsborough on match days. It is a two tier structure with 2'494 seats in the lower half, and 4,164 seats in the upper enclosure. The stand is ajoined to the North West Corner which is an overspil zone for away fans (1,337 seats) The original stand built at the turn of the century was a covered terrace housing up to 3,000 fans. In the 1920s this was joined by the North West terrace before the Leppings Lane stand was replaced by a 12,000 capacity partially covered terrace. Before the 1966 World Cup the West Stand was demolished again and replaced by a two-tiered structure with 4,471 seats in the upper tier and retaining a terrace in front of the stand. After the infamous Hillsborough disaster in 1989 the lower tier terrace was closed for two years and replaced by 2,294 seats. The North West Corner was the last section of the stand to be made all seated, adding another 1,337 seats to the structure. The old wooden seats in the upper tier were replaced with bigger plastic ones in 1997. The upper tier of the stand has been used for away fans over the past few years, yet due to wendnesday's present position in league one the away fans are generally situated on the lower tier
The largest stand at Hillsborough situated on the banks of the river don. It has a large lower tier with 8,275 seats (including the directors box) and an upper tier known as the 'Grand Stand' with 3,077 seats. The Upper tier is used as the clubs Family enclosure. The first South Stand was originally constructed at Olive Grove, but moved with the club in the summer of 1899 to the new site at Owlerton where it was reconstructed brick-by-brick. The famous clock was also moved to Hillsborough. The modern stand, the oldest remaining stand at the ground, was constructed between 1913 and 1915 for a fee exceeding £17,000 to a design by Archibald Leitch. The stand had 5,600 seats as well as room for 11,000 standing fans. The famous clock was salvaged from the old stand and put on the new one. The modern stand has seen a series of improvements, the first being a conversion to an all-seated stand in 1965 ahead of the 1966 FIFA World Cup and latest being a major £7 million re-development for the Euro 1996 international competition when an upper tier (Grandstand) of 3,077 extra seats, a new roof, 30 executive boxes, two conference suites, a bar, a restaurant and a range of office space were added. Again, the famous clock was saved and put on the new stand. The South Stand is the most recognisable of the four stands at Hillsborough and still bears the original now-famous and easily recognisable clock face and finial from the very first stand, which was brought from Olive Grove. The stand houses the main reception, media and hospitality boxes, as well as the ground's family enclosure, five modern refreshment kiosks and four bars. It also features concourse television sets relaying live coverage of the match as well as highlights at half-time. The team changing room and dug-outs are also situated here.
Named after a hill that was the scene of a famous battle in the Second Boer War, the Spion Kop is built into a natural hill at the east end of the ground and houses the most vocal of Wednesday supporters. It is usually simply referred to by fans as The Kop. In 1914 concrete terracing was installed on the bank, which was further extended in 1927. The fanal expantion of the hill came in 1954. The stand remained open to the elements until a roof was added in 1986 after fans raised money to contribute to the cost. When the roof was added, the stand was 'squared' off to make it symmetrical so that the roof was used fully. due to this, the Kop was extended, so the capacity rose from 16,000 to 22,000, which made it the biggest standing area in Europe at the time. The Kop was the last part of the Wednesday ground to be converted to all-seater accommodation, the change finally coming in 1993 to comply with new FA Premier League regulations following the Taylor Report. The capacity was hence halved, but the Kop remains one of the largest single tier stands in Britain. A large concourse area was added in 2004, partially funded by the Owls Trust.
The North West Corner, or North West terrace as it is sometimes still referred to as, despite now being all seated is the only major section of the stadium to remain uncovered (the other area is the small corner section joined to the Kop). The original North West Terrace was built between 1919 and 1920 to adjoin both the North Stand and West Stand, but was demolished in early 1965 and replaced in mid 1966, in time for the 1966 World Cup. The terrace was not in use for two years, as the stand failed to gain a safety certificate for the 2007–08 season,.[15] In recent years it had only been used as overspill for away fans when both the upper and lower tiers of the West Stand have been filled. Whilst not being used for seating, the Corner has recently been used as extra advertising space, with advertising boards on the back wall, and more recently a large 'My Sheffield Jobs' seat covering appearing alongside their sponsorship of the North Stand. It is sponsored by Handley Brown.
The stadium control area is located in the South - West area of the ground, between the South and West stands. The most dominant feature is the electronic scoreboard, which was one of the first electric scoreboards in an English football ground. For the majority of the match, this shows the score and time, but as of the 2011–12 season, the board shows advertisements every few minutes. Prior to and after the match, information like team line - ups, fixtures, and other results are shown.Below the scoreboard is the stadium control building, where all the technical aspects of the stadium are controlled from (e.g. lighting, announcements). At the base of the area is a very small section of disused terrace, which has still not been converted to seating. It is only used as a congregation area for the police and stewards, and has not held fans since the 1989 Hillsborough Disaster.
The Owls Megastore is the official Sheffield Wednesday club shop, located underneath the North Stand.
It and the neighbouring ticket office were severely damaged in the Hillsborough Flood. The wall separating the ticket office and club shop was subsequently demolished, and a much larger Owls Megastore opened a few months later, with the ticket office now being located in one of the corners of the shop.
A bridge was built across the River Don in 1996, to provide access to the refurbished South Stand, ahead of Euro 96. It connects Parkside Road and the surrounding area to the main entrance to Hillsborough Stadium.
Several restaurants, such as Dooley's and the Sheridan Suite, are located under the south stand. Other areas include the 1867 Lounge, various bars, and a wide range of office space. Board rooms, meeting halls and business suites are also located here.
The stadium is located in the north west of the city roughly three miles from the city centre.[16] The area is mainly residential with a number of shops and a shopping centre located at nearby Hillsborough Corner. Views of the area can be enjoyed from hills located to the west.
The stadium is sandwiched between Hillsborough Park to the south and terrace housing to the north. The River Don also runs alongside the stadium to the south. The Spion Kop backs straight onto Penistone Road, a major dual carriageway leading to the city centre, while there is some space between the West Stand and Leppings Lane.
Sheffield Wednesday announced in the summer of 2009 plans for a £22 million upgrade of the stadium and an increase in capacity to 44,825 from the current 39,812 with no viewing restrictions. These plans will be completed by 2013 and will bring the stadium up to FIFA standards for hosting World Cup matches. The details of the plans are as follows:
The highest attendance recorded at Hillsborough was in the FA Cup fifth round on 17 February 1934. A total of 72,841 turned up to see a 2–2 draw with Manchester City.[23] The highest attendance recorded since work to convert the stadium to an all-seater venue was completed in 1993 was for a Premier League match against Manchester United on 2 February 2000. The game was watched by 39,640 fans.
The highest seasonal average attendance at Hillsborough was 42,520 in the 1952–53 season in Division 1. The highest average attendance in the second tier of English football was 41,682 in the 1951–52 season, which saw the club gain promotion from Division 2 and Derek Dooley score a record 46 league goals. The highest average attandance in the third tier of English football was achieved in the 2004–05 season when an average of 23,107 fans watched each League One game at Hillsborough.
The lowest average attendance at Hillsborough came in the first season after its opening (1899–00) when each game was attended by an average crowd of just 6,800 fans, mainly due to the fact that the new stadium, then called Owlerton Stadium, was a fraction of the size it is today.
The largest gate receipts taken from a match at Hillsborough was for the Euro 96 game between Turkey and Denmark on 19 June 1996. A crowd of 28,671 watched the match, paying a total of £1,012,150.[23]
Hillsborough still holds the record for the highest attendance for a third tier football match. 49,309 spectators turned up on 26 December 1979, one of the most memorable days in SWFC history, when the Owls beat Sheffield United 4–0 in a top of the table clash, now known as the Boxing Day Massacre.
The largest receipts for a club game at Hillsborough were for the FA Cup semi-final replay between Chesterfield and Middlesbrough on 22 April 1997 and totalled £680,965.[23] The game was watched by 30,339 fans.[24]
The highest receipts for a game at Hillsborough involving Sheffield Wednesday was for the Premier League match against Manchester United on 7 March 1998, which was watched by 39,427 fans[25] and earned the club £386,426.[23]
Hillsborough was used as a venue for the 1966 FIFA World Cup and 1996 UEFA European championships. It was also used for some England matches prior to the construction of Wembley Stadium
| Date | Result | Competition | Attendance | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1920-10-04 | England | 5–4 | Scotland | British Home Championship | 35.000 | ||
| 1962-10-03 | England | 1–1 | France | UEFA Euro 1964 qualifier | 35,380 | ||
| 1966-07-12 | West Germany | 5–0 | Switzerland | 1966 FIFA World Cup group stage | 36,000 | ||
| 1966-07-15 | Spain | 2–1 | Switzerland | 1966 FIFA World Cup group stage | 32,000 | ||
| 1966-07-19 | Argentina | 2–0 | Switzerland | 1966 FIFA World Cup group stage | 32,000 | ||
| 1966-07-23 | West Germany | 4–0 | Uruguay | 1966 FIFA World Cup quarter-final | 34,000 | ||
| 1973-09-26 | Northern Ireland | 0–0 | Bulgaria | 1974 FIFA World Cup qualifier | 6,206 | ||
| 1996-06-09 | Portugal | 1–1 | Denmark | UEFA Euro 1996 group stage | 34,993 | ||
| 1996-06-16 | Croatia | 3–0 | Denmark | UEFA Euro 1996 group stage | 33,671 | ||
| 1996-06-19 | Turkey | 0–3 | Denmark | UEFA Euro 1996 group stage | 28,951 |
Hillsborough Stadium was selected by The FA as a proposed venue for matches as part of the English 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cup bid on 16 December 2009.[26][27]
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