10 iconic football stadiums you need to visit (before the wrecking balldoes)
As many West Ham, Oxford, Spurs or Arsenal fans will tell you, once that history-filled ground is gone, it really is gone. The new edifices might have shiny new seats, better sightlines, even beers filled from the bottom up… but just what’s been lost in the modernisation process?
It’s the stories and rituals, that favourite seat and neighbour, the sense of history and hallowed turf, the feeling of being a fan and not a customer. To quote Bruce Springsteen’s defiant Wrecking Ball, a stadium demolition is where: ‘all our little victories and glories have turned into parking lots’. And the Spurs fans didn’t even get that cheese room…
So, while many of us reminisce about the lost loves of Upton Park, White Hart Lane or even Wembley (conveniently forgetting the toilets and pillars), here are 10 other stadiums you need to savour before the demolition crew move in and it transforms into a shiny if soulless dome (or a shiny and soulless supermarket).
San Siro, Milan, Italy
Opened in 1926 but beamed into British homes by the 1990 World Cup and by James Richardson’s Gazzetta Football Italia, San Siro (or Stadio Giuseppe Meazza) is a stadium that manages to be at once futuristic and decaying, raucous and romantic, and unlike any on Planet Earth.
Exit the underground stadium at San Siro Stadio metro stop and your first glimpse of the 75,000-capacity arena will stop you in your tracks. It looks like it could have been created in another dimension. You can hear the hum from a kilometre away, and that noise becomes near-deafening if you sit just above AC Milan’s flare-waving ultras in the Curva Sud, as I was lucky to do during a thumping of Juventus in 2022.
Yes, look a little closer and it’s seen better days, but those towers, that roofing, the steep terraces and the views over Milan itself are incomparable. And then there are the memories of Baresi, Maldini, Gullit, Van Basten, Shevchenko for AC; Bergomi, Matthäus, Zanetti, Ronaldo and Sneijder for Inter when Serie A was at the pinnacle of football.
And yet, San Siro looks set to be replaced in the early 2030s by a Sir Norman Foster and David Manica-designed arena, meaning time could be ticking to visit this true football cathedral. You won’t regret it.
Mestalla, Valencia, Spain
Boasting what are widely thought to be the steepest stands of any major ground in Europe, Valencia’s Mestalla has been hosting football since 1923 and is now the oldest stadium in La Liga. It’s been graced by peak Mendieta and Aimar, Ayala and Villa, with Valencia briefly breaking the Real/Barca duopoly in Spanish football during the early 2000s.
Valencia have been planning to move from the (Viejo) Mestalla to Nou Mestalla since 2007, with the unbuilt shell of the new stadium acting as a concrete reminder of the club’s turbulent fall from the pinnacle of Spanish football.
But now the Mestalla move is back on again, with the club set to move in the 2027/28 season. Which means you have just months to experience the Mestalla’s 50,000-capacity, 35-degree stands before Valencia do one to the €250-300m Nou Mestalla. The local paella is pretty good, too.
St. James’ Park, Newcastle, England
Another genuine football cathedral on this list is Newcastle’s St James’ Park, where the Toon have played since 1892.
Whether it’s the brutalist East Stand, the vertigo-inducing Leazes End or the sheer noise of the Gallowgate, this has long been one of Britain’s (and Europe’s) great football grounds for home and away fans alike.
But now the club are considering building a new stadium behind the existing ground at Leazes Park, meaning the hallowed turf where Keegan, Gazza, Waddle, Ginola and Shearer once shone so brightly could eventually be replaced.
Old Trafford, Manchester, England
Okay, the roof can be leaky and the shiny new edifices at Arsenal, Spurs and across the city make it seem outdated, but you should visit Old Trafford at least once before United move to their proposed 100,000-capacity big top, currently targeted for the early 2030s.
It’s the ground of the Busby Babes and Charlton, Law and Best. Giggs and Cantona, Rooney and Ronnie. Of the Stretford End singing ‘Take Me Home’ and of Fergie time and Brian Kidd on his knees, after all.
Kenilworth Road, Luton, England
Kenilworth Road has been Luton Town’s home since 1905 and, despite its 12,000 capacity, was hosting Premier League football as recently as 2023/24.
Understandably, given its 12,000-capacity, Luton are targeting a move to the new 25,000-capacity Power Court Stadium for the 2028/29 season, with the existing Kenilworth Road stadium expected to be demolished and redeveloped into residential housing.
So enjoy one of England’s most atmospheric old grounds while you can, including the famous entrance into the Oak Road away end through the row of terraced housing.
Millmoor, Rotherham, England
Okay, you won’t be able to watch actual live football here, but Rotherham United’s spiritual home of Millmoor is still just about standing, despite having been abandoned since 2008.
After years of decay and failed attempts to revamp the stadium, demolition plans have been submitted for large sections of the ground. The long goodbye could finally end.
Stadio Artemio Franchi, Florence, Italy
The Stadio Artemio Franchi, home of Fiorentina since 1931, is about to undergo a major reconstruction project.
Major sections of Pier Luigi Nervi’s original design are set to face the demolition squad, making much of it unrecognisable from the seasons when Batistuta, Rui Costa and the famous La Viola shirts graced the pinnacle of Italian football. The facelift will include a restoration but not full demolition of the famous Torre di Maratona (Tower of Marathon).
Stamford Bridge, Chelsea, England
Stamford Bridge’s proximity to London’s King’s Road is one of the joys of a visit to the 40,000-capacity home of Chelsea FC. And the reason why they’ve fallen far beyond London rivals Arsenal and Spurs in match day revenue.
Being surrounded by some of the capital’s most expensive real estate and transport infrastructure has meant expansion at the current site is decidedly tricky, meaning Chelsea’s owners have long explored possible moves to new London homes, including Battersea and Earl’s Court, or a complete rebuild. Either way, the costs are expected to run into the billions.
So, while we’re not expecting any move or rebuild to happen until next decade, tick-off the ground once graced by Zola, Drogba and Super Frank before it becomes unrecognisable… or some rather pricey apartments.
Vitality Stadium, Bournemouth, England
If ever a Premier League club needed a new stadium, it’s Bournemouth. Restricted by Dean Court’s capacity of 12,000, the club have remarkably become a top-flight mainstay despite falling way behind their rivals (see Brighton and Brentford) in match day revenue.
That could soon be about to change, with plans announced for a complete rebuild of the existing stadium instead of a move. Capacity would be 20,000, potentially rising to 23,000. Time then to visit the Premier League anomaly – and one of the league’s great away days – before the renovation begins.
The New Lawn, Forest Green Rovers, England
Perched on top of a hill in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire, The New Lawn has only been Forest Green Rovers’ home since 2006, but the club have long explored building a new stadium near the M5.
Plans for the Eco Park, purported to have the lowest carbon footprint of any football stadium in the world, are currently on hold, but, until then, The New Lawn has plenty of quirks to make a trip worthwhile. It hosted what’s believed to be the world’s first vegan football match in 2014, its pitch is made of organic materials and, in contrast to the mechanically recovered burgers seen elsewhere, there’s an environmentally sustainable menu.
