Dumbarton Football Stadium

The Bet Butler Stadium
The Rock

Location in West Dunbartonshire

Former names Strathclyde Homes Stadium
Location Dumbarton, West Dunbartonshire, Scotland
Coordinates 55°56′18.41″N 4°33′41.18″W / 55.9384472°N 4.5614389°W
Owner Dumbarton F.C.
Capacity 2,020[1]
Surface Grass
Opened 2000

The Bet Butler Stadium is a stadium in Dumbarton, Scotland situated right below the famous Dumbarton Rock. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of Dumbarton The stadium has a capacity of 2,020,[1] and was built in 2000 after the move away from Dumbarton's traditional home, Boghead Park. It was built on part of the site formerly occupied by Denny's shipyard. The stadium is located 5/10 minutes walk from Dumbarton East railway station [2]which is on the North Clyde Line.

The stadium has just one stand, officially opened on Saturday 2 December 2000 prior to the visit of Elgin City; a match which ended 3–0 to the Sons. It is nicknamed 'The Rock' by Sons fans, as it is adjacent to Dumbarton Castle. Open areas ring the three sides without stands, which could be used for future expansion, were Dumbarton to undergo a revival and secure a place in the Scottish Premiership.

The Scotland international team have also used the stadium for training purposes before playing home matches.[3]

Aside from football the stadium also hosts many other events; wedding receptions, conferences & various parties are held in the Allied Distillers suite. The ground of the stadium have also been used for 'Cruise for Charity' an event which brings together modified car enthusiasts from around Scotland to raise money for charity, arranged by WestCruise.

The original name of the stadium, Strathclyde Homes Stadium, changed after the stadium sponsor, Strathclyde Homes, went into receivership in September 2011.[4] On 18 February 2012 the stadium was officially renamed as Dumbarton Football Stadium, sponsored by DL Cameron.[5] It was renamed again, just five months later on 20 July 2012, to The Bet Butler Stadium.[6]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 "Dumbarton Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
  2. http://www.dumbartonfootballclub.com/directions/
  3. Dumbarton investigate new stadium, BBC Sport, 4 July 2009.
  4. STADIUM SPONSORSHIP, dumbartonfootballclub.com, 12 September 2011.
  5. STADIUM SPONSORSHIP, dumbartonfootballclub.com, 18 February 2012.
  6. STADIUM IS RENAMED, dumbartonfootballclub.com, 20 July 2012.