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90-482: London Athletic Club’s colours are Classic Green and Old Gold. The club's kit includes a green vest with a single horizontal gold band. Inside the gold band on the front of the vest is the name of the club or the club’s crest. Over sixty members of London Athletic Club have competed at the Olympic Games. Australian Teddy Flack won the first Olympic medals for the club: double gold in the 800 and 1500 metres at

180-612: A baseball match between the touring New York Giants and the Chicago White Sox . In 1924 the stadium hosted the 1924 Women's Olympiad , the first international event for women in track and field in the UK. A speedway team operated from the stadium from 1929 until 1932, winning the Southern League in their opening season. Initially open meetings were held there in 1928. A nineteen-year-old junior rider, Charlie Biddle,

270-543: A banked cycling track and terraces that held six thousand spectators. The inaugural meeting of the London Athletic Club at the new ground was held on 10 May 1905 ( Chelsea Football Club used the ground in the winter months and its first match there was on 4 September 1905). The Bridge was to remain LAC’s base until 1933. During 1933 the track at Stamford Bridge was converted for use as a greyhound racing track and

360-416: A builders' strike and the remainder of the ground remained untouched. The new East Stand was finished, but most of the (unusable) running tracks remained, and the new stand was also displaced by approximately 20 metres, compared to the pitch. The idea was to move the entire stadium towards the north. But due to the financial situation in the mid-1970s the other stands were not rebuilt for another two decades. In

450-529: A capacity of around 100,000 and was the second largest ground in England after Crystal Palace . It was used as the FA Cup final venue. As originally constructed, Stamford Bridge was an athletics track and the pitch was initially located in the middle of the running track. This meant that spectators were separated from the field of play on all sides by the width of running track and, on the north and south sides,

540-459: A cost of £100 million. The intention was that these facilities would provide extra revenue to support the football side of the business, but they were less successful than hoped, and before the Abramovich takeover in 2003, the debt taken on to finance them was a major burden on the club. Soon after the takeover, a decision was taken to drop the "Chelsea Village" brand and refocus on Chelsea as

630-586: A few hundred yards north of where Stamford Bridge Stadium is today. Then, in 1870, the brothers James and William Waddell, who had joined LAC as athletes, became treasurer and secretary. Profits soared and in 1877 they secured six and a half acres at Stamford Bridge . The grounds made LAC the premier club of the time. (The brothers fled the country in 1883 and they left the club in debt.) The early meetings featured events such as cricket ball throwing, bicycle races and, in winter, regular “Assault at Arms” evenings which included fencing and boxing . The LAC even raised

720-590: A football club. However, the stadium is sometimes still referred to as part of Chelsea Village or "The Village". 2005 saw the opening of a new club museum, known as the Chelsea Museum or the Centenary Museum, to mark the one hundredth anniversary of the club. The museum is located in the former Shed Galleria. Visitors are able to visit the WAGs lounge and then watch an introductory video message from

810-548: A home for the London Athletic Club and was used almost exclusively for that purpose until 1904, when the lease was acquired by brothers Gus and Joseph Mears , who wanted to stage high-profile professional football matches there. However, previous to this, in 1898, Stamford Bridge played host to the World Championship of shinty between Beauly Shinty Club and London Camanachd . Stamford Bridge

900-451: A home for the London Athletic Club and was used almost exclusively for that purpose until 1904. Subsequently, with the opening of the football club, the need for a playing surface resulted in the construction of the pitch. In June 2015 significant upgrades were made to the undersoil-heating, drainage, and irrigation systems. Along with the installation a new hybrid grass pitch, this brought the pitch up to modern standards. The current pitch at

990-501: A large mural by Solomon Souza on an outside wall of the West Stand of the stadium. The mural is part of Chelsea's 'Say No to Antisemitism' campaign funded by club owner Roman Abramovich. Included on the mural are depictions of footballers Julius Hirsch and Árpád Weisz , who were killed at Auschwitz concentration camp , and Ron Jones, a British prisoner of war known as the 'Goalkeeper of Auschwitz'. The Bridge opened in 1877 as

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1080-432: A market crash in the early 1990s, allowing Bates to do a deal with its banks and re-unite the freehold with the club. During the 1984–85 season , following a series of pitch invasions and fights by football hooligans during matches at the stadium, chairman Ken Bates erected an electric perimeter fence between the stands and the pitch – identical to the one which effectively controlled cattle on his dairy farm. However,

1170-624: A number of L.A.C. players not turning up and some of the Wanderers playing for the opposition to make the sides equal; the posts also did not have the regulation tape and the L.A.C. was credited with one goal that would ordinarily have been considered "over". The club's most notable footballers were F.H. Hartung, who also played for the Clapham Common Club and later joined the Wanderers, and the Chinnery brothers, who also played for

1260-818: A private hospital. He was cremated and his ashes were interred at Berwick Cemetery. Flack is commemorated by a bronze statue on the median strip of High St, Berwick, which was unveiled in 1998 by former running great and later Governor of Victoria John Landy . The former Berwick Recreational Reserve was renamed Edwin Flack Reserve in 1996 to honour the town's first Olympic hero and medal winner, and it includes several sporting grounds including an athletics track, an Australian rules football oval, netball courts and soccer pitch. Melbourne Grammar School 's sporting complex at Port Melbourne has been named Edwin Flack Park in honour of their past student. Flack

1350-455: A row of executive boxes that stretches the length of the stand. The lower tier was built on schedule and opened in 1998. However, difficulties with planning permission meant that the stand was not fully completed until 2001. Construction of the stand almost caused another financial crisis, which would have seen the club fall into administration, but for the personal intervention of Roman Abramovich . In borrowing £70m from Eurobonds to finance

1440-475: A rugby team. Charles Dickens, Jr wrote that in 1878 LAC had 700 active and non-active (i.e. non-competing) members; it held 90 competitions with over 1,000 competitors and in that year 268 new members had joined. In 1879 LAC held its own ‘national championships’, since its members had boycotted those of the Amateur Athletic Club based at Lillie Bridge and the forerunner to the governing body of

1530-696: A time of 1:02.42.0. On 9 to 11 November 1893, an intercolonial meet described as the Australasian Athletics Championships was held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground , between athletes from the British colonies that were later to form the nations of Australia and New Zealand. This was the second such meet, the first having been held at Moore Park in Sydney on 31 May 1890. Flack competed in the 1893 event and won

1620-542: A time of 4:33.2. On the fourth day of the Games, Flack earned his second first-place medal, winning the 800 metres in 2 min 11.9 sec. It may be noted that, even by the standards of the time, the times required to win the 800 m and 1,500 m at the first Olympics were slow. Although there was no official world record in that era, by way of comparison, the local 880 yards championship in Flack's home colony of Victoria

1710-617: A variety of other sporting events since Chelsea have occupied the ground. In October 1905 it hosted a rugby union match between the All Blacks and Middlesex, and in 1908, Stamford Bridge was the venue for a Rugby League international between Great Britain and the touring New Zealand All Golds, who won 18–6. Two New Zealanders George Smith and William "Massa" Johnston played and scored in both these games. Two further Rugby League games were held in 1952, British Empire XIII v New Zealand, and 1983, Fulham v Cardiff. In 1914 Stamford Bridge hosted

1800-526: Is along the north edge of the pitch. In 1939, a small two storied North Stand including seating was erected. It was originally intended to span the entire northern end, but the outbreak of World War II and its aftermath compelled the club to keep the stand small. It was demolished and replaced by open terracing for standing supporters in 1976. The North Terrace was closed in 1993 and the present North Stand of two tiers (the Matthew Harding Stand)

1890-532: Is awarded to "an athlete who has rendered distinguished service to athletics", is named in his honour. Flack was portrayed by English actor Benedict Taylor in the 1984 television mini-series The First Olympics: Athens 1896 . Stamford Bridge (stadium) Stamford Bridge ( / ˈ s t æ m f ər d / ) is a football stadium in Fulham , adjacent to the borough of Chelsea in West London . It

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1980-590: Is considered to be a derivative of "Samfordesbrigge" meaning "the bridge at the sandy ford". Eighteenth century maps show a "Stanford Creek" running along the route of what is now a railway line at the back of the East Stand as a tributary of the Thames . The upper reaches of this tributary have been known as Billingswell Ditch, Pools Creek and Counters Creek. In medieval times the creek was known as Billingwell Dyche, derived from "Billing's spring or stream". It formed

2070-417: Is the heart of the stadium, housing the tunnel, dugout, dressing rooms, conference room, press centre, Audio-Visual and commentary box. The middle tier is occupied by facilities, clubs, and executive suites. The upper tier provides spectators with one of the best views of the pitch and it is the only section to have survived the extensive redevelopment of the 90s. Previously, it was the home to away supporters on

2160-448: Is the home of Premier League club Chelsea . With a capacity of 40,022, it is the ninth largest venue of the 2024–25 Premier League season and the eleventh largest football stadium in England. Opened in 1877, the stadium was used by London Athletic Club until 1905, when new owner Gus Mears founded Chelsea Football Club to occupy the ground; Chelsea have played their home games there ever since. It has undergone major changes over

2250-475: The 1952 summer olympics. Jack Parker along with fellow hurdler Harry Kane competed in the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne in the 110 metre and 400 meter hurdles respectively. The high-jumper Geoff Parsons , who competed in the 1984 and 1988 Olympic Games, reached the final in 1988. The London Athletic Club is the oldest independent track and field club in the world: it was founded in 1863. Initially

2340-535: The Amateur Athletic Club and the C.C.C. In 1904 London Athletic Club moved to a new stadium and grounds at Stamford Bridge . The old stand it had used there was demolished and the new construction used spoil from excavating the tube lines of the London underground in order to level the land. The result was a grandstand overlooking a football field that was surrounded by a quarter-mile running track,

2430-651: The Melbourne -based family accounting firm,was renamed Flack and Flack. Flack purchased a property near Berwick, where he stayed on weekends and bred Friesian cattle . He never competed for Victoria again (or for Australia after the country was formed in 1901), but he joined the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) and was part of the first Australian delegation to attend an International Olympic Committee (IOC) Congress . After developing heart problems, Flack died in 1935, following an operation at

2520-614: The Melbourne Church of England Grammar School in 1892, where he studied Greek history , Flack joined his father's accountancy firm, Davey, Flack & Co. From 1892 to 1894, Flack was active in middle and long-distance running in amateur athletics in the then colony of Victoria, competing with the Melburnian Hare & Hounds athletics club. In October 1892 he placed third in the inaugural Victorian 10-mile cross country championship, held at Oakleigh (Park) Racecourse, in

2610-628: The first modern Olympics in Athens. The London Olympics of 1908 saw 28 club members representing the UK and Wyndham Halswelle winning gold in the 400 metres by a controversial walkover. Several club members competed at the 1912 Olympics in Stockholm including Sidney Abrahams (Long Jump) and Philip Noel-Baker (800 and 1500 metres), who also captained the British Olympic team at Antwerp in 1920 after World War I. Also running for Britain at

2700-503: The 1940s and 1950s. The schools’ meetings would lead to further club competitions against public schools and grammar schools and several of the young athletes who competed would go on to join the club. The LAC Schools’ meetings were transferred to the Independent Schools’ Physical Education Conference in 1973. The 100th and 150th anniversaries were commemorated at historically significant locations for

2790-483: The 1997/98 season. Along with the Matthew Harding Stand, it is an area of the ground where many vocal fans congregate. The view from the upper tier is widely regarded as one of the best in the stadium. The Shed also contains the centenary museum and a memorial wall, where families of deceased fans are able to leave a permanent memorial of their loved ones, indicating their eternal support. A large chunk of

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2880-591: The 400 metre hurdles and Douglas Lowe took the gold medal in the 800 metres. Douglas Neame (110 metre hurdles) and Vernon Morgan (3000 metre steeplechase) also competed at the 1928 Olympics. Club members Jack Powell (800 metres) and Roly Harper (110 metre hurdles) competed at the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles. Pre–World War II Olympic success continued with Frederick Wolff leading Britain’s 4 x 400 metres relay team to gold in Berlin in 1936, Brian McCabe reaching

2970-546: The 800 metres final and John Powell reaching the semi-final . After WWII, at the 1948 London Olympics , Michael Pope competed in the 400 metre hurdles. Four years later, John Disley won bronze in the 3000 metre steeplechase in Helsinki in 1952 and later became synonymous with the London Marathon . Javelin thrower Richard (Dick) Miller from Northern Ireland and hurdler Jack Parker also represented Great Britain at

3060-626: The Antwerp Olympics were R A Lindsay and Guy Butler in the winning 4 x 400 metre relay team. Guy Butler went on to win Olympic medals again in the 1924 Paris Olympics and the Amsterdam Olympics of 1928. Other club members had Olympic success in 1924 and 1928. In the 100 metres in 1924 Harold Abrahams won gold and Arthur Porritt won bronze while in the 800 metres Douglas Lowe won gold. In 1928 Lord Burghley won gold in

3150-568: The East Stand had a gabled corrugated iron roof, with around 6,000 seats and a terraced enclosure. The stand remained until 1973, when it was demolished in what was meant to be the opening phase of a comprehensive redevelopment of the stadium. The new stand was opened at the start of the 1974–75 season, but due to the ensuing financial difficulties at the club, it was the only part of the development to be completed. The East Stand essentially survives in its 1973 three-tiered cantilevered form, although it has been much refurbished and modernised since. It

3240-524: The GRA refused them permission to do so. The Bridge pitch is surrounded on each side by four covered all-seater stands, officially known as the Matthew Harding Stand (North), East stand, The Shed End (South) and West Stand. Each stand has at least two tiers and was constructed for entirely different reasons as part of separate expansion plans. The Matthew Harding Stand, previously known as the North Stand,

3330-486: The London Athletic Club to leave the venue. Totalisator turnover in 1946 was nearly £6 million (£5,749,592); to put this in perspective to football, the British transfer record at the same time in 1946 was £14,500. On 1 August 1968 the GRA closed Stamford Bridge to greyhound racing quoting the fact that Stamford Bridge had to race on the same days as White City . An attempt by Chelsea to bring back greyhound racing to Stamford Bridge in 1976, to alleviate debts, failed when

3420-607: The Matthew Harding stand. It is the largest football museum in London. The club merchandise shop, known as the Megastore, is situated on the south-west corner of the stadium. The shop has two floors; the ground floor mainly consists of souvenirs and children's gear, and the first floor offers mainly apparel, including training jerseys, jackets, coats, and replica team jerseys. There are also two smaller shops, one located at

3510-663: The NUTS librarian. Teddy Flack Edwin Harold Flack (5 November 1873 – 10 January 1935) was an Australian athlete and tennis player. Also known as "Teddy", he was Australia's first Olympian, being its only representative in 1896 , and the first Olympic champion in the 800 metres and the 1500 metres running events. Following Flack's Olympic appearance, he did not compete in any large events again, opting to breed cattle and help his family's accounting firm. Flack died aged 61 following an operation, and

3600-471: The Second World War and Chelsea were the first side they faced. An estimated crowd of over 100,000 crammed into Stamford Bridge to watch a 3–3 draw, with many spectators on the dog track and on top of the stands. In the early 1970s the club's owners initiated a project to renovate Stamford Bridge. However, the cost of building the East Stand escalated out of control after shortages of materials and

3690-525: The Shed End penalty spot in 2006. In 1964–65 , a seated West Stand was built to replace the existing terracing on the west side. Most of the West Stand consisted of rising ranks of wooden tip up seats on iron frames, but seating at the very front was on concrete forms known as "the Benches". The old West Stand was demolished in 1997 and replaced by the current West Stand. It has three tiers, in addition to

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3780-486: The Stamford Gate entrance and the other inside the new museum building behind the Matthew Harding stand. Former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich sanctioned redevelopment of Stamford Bridge to around 55,000 to 60,000 seats. Its location in a heavily built-up part of Inner London , in between a main road and two railway lines complicates the logistics of the redevelopment. Additionally, dispersing 60,000 fans into

3870-651: The away leg 6–0, however. On 23 May 2013, the stadium hosted the final of the 2012–13 UEFA Women's Champions League . On 5 August 2023, Stamford Bridge hosted charity match Game4Ukraine to raise money for the United24 initiative, a fundraiser to help in Ukraine 's rebuilding of facilities and infrastructure that suffered damage from the Russian invasion of Ukraine as well as the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War . In 2019 and 2024, Stamford Bridge has also been used as

3960-535: The bid was not accepted, and the Battersea Power Station site was redeveloped for residential and commercial uses. On 17 June 2014, the club announced that it had commissioned a study of the area from Fulham Broadway to Stamford Bridge and beyond, by architects Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands . In December 2015, Chelsea announced intention to build a 60,000-seater stadium at Stamford Bridge. On 5 January 2017, Hammersmith and Fulham council approved

4050-516: The bottom tier. However, at the start of the 2005–06 season, then-manager José Mourinho requested that the family section move to this part of the stand, to boost team morale. Away fans were moved to the Shed End. The Shed End is along the south side of the pitch. In 1930, a new terrace was built on the south side, for more standing spectators. It was originally known as the Fulham Road End, but supporters nicknamed it 'The Shed' and this led

4140-595: The boundary between the parishes of Kensington and Fulham. By the 18th century, the creek had become known as Counter's Creek , which is the name it has retained since. The stream had two local bridges: Stamford Bridge on the Fulham Road (also recorded as Little Chelsea Bridge) and Stanbridge on the King's Road , now known as Stanley Bridge. The existing Stamford Bridge was built of brick in 1860–1862 and since been partly reconstructed. Stamford Bridge opened in 1877 as

4230-585: The champion walker of the time, recalled in his autobiography what was arguably the first ever international athletics meeting, when a team from London Athletic Club weathered the Irish Sea to take part in a match in Ireland on 5 June 1876. In 1895 the club sailed to America for a match against New York Athletic club . Another international match took place in 1903 – and was celebrated with a return match in 1985 – at Le Touquet , France. As well as track and field,

4320-487: The club moved its base to White City after being evicted by the Greyhound Racing Association . In 1954 the club moved again to Hurlingham Park stadium, which had been opened by Roger Bannister four months after he had broken the four-minute mile barrier. The club moved its base yet again in 1966 to Crystal Palace , then returned to Hurlingham in 1972 and later used Motspur Park , one of

4410-532: The club to officially change its name. It became the most favoured spot for the loudest and most die-hard support, until the terrace was demolished in 1994, when all-seater stadia became compulsory by law as a safety measure in light of the Taylor Report following the Hillsborough disaster . The seated stand which replaced it is still known as the Shed End (see below). The new stand opened in time for

4500-618: The club was named Mincing Lane Athletic Club because its members were mainly businessmen in the City of London. Its first meeting, on 27 June 1863, was at the (then recently-opened) West London Cricket and Running Grounds, Brompton. A later meeting, held on 9 April 1864 at Bow running grounds, was reported in The Sporting Life : “From the attendance….and the excellent sports exhibited, the club promises to become very popular”. Meetings were held at various locations across London: another

4590-786: The club. The 100th anniversary dinner in 1963 was at the Clothworkers Hall, in Mincing Lane in the City of London–significant because the club was founded as Mincing Lane Athletic Club. HRH Prince Philip was guest of honour as President of the British Amateur Athletic Board and the President of the club, the Marquess of Exeter , was in the chair. The 150th anniversary celebration in 2013 was at Stamford Bridge stadium. The President, Richard Solomons,

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4680-518: The electric fence was never turned on and before long it was dismantled, due to the GLC blocking it from being switched on for health and safety reasons. With the Taylor Report arising from the Hillsborough disaster being published in January 1990 and ordering all top division clubs to have all-seater stadiums in time for the 1994–95 season , Chelsea's plan for a 34,000-seat stadium at Stamford Bridge

4770-619: The events included fencing, tennis, cycling and horse-riding. The club initiated the idea of a national athletics meeting for English schools. The annual meetings began in the 19th century and until 1948 were restricted to public schools. The first complete London Athletic Club Public Schools’ Meeting was held at Queen's Club , on 10 April 1897. Boys competed at 100, 440, 880 yards, the mile, 120 yards hurdles, high jump and long jump. Later meetings were held at Stamford Bridge until 1933, then mainly at White City until 1962, and then at Motspur Park. Typically over 200 schools would compete each year in

4860-527: The final of the inaugural Lambert & Butler county cricket competition. It, however, failed and the experiment of playing cricket on football grounds was ended. Stamford Bridge briefly hosted American football – despite not being long enough for a regulation-size gridiron field – when the London Monarchs were based there in 1997. The Greyhound Racing Association (GRA) brought greyhound racing to Stamford Bridge on 31 July 1933 and this forced

4950-439: The first round, but lost their only match to Dionysios Kasdaglis of Egypt and Demetrios Petrokokkinos of Greece. They placed third due to their semi-final appearance, but medals for third places were not yet awarded in 1896. The medals were retroactively awarded in January 2008. Flack was a popular competitor at the 1896 games, and was commonly referred to as the "Lion of Athens". In 1898, Flack returned to Victoria and

5040-447: The former vice-president Richard Attenborough . They are then guided decade by decade through the club's history seeing old programmes, past shirts, José Mourinho 's coat and other memorabilia. A motto on the wall of the museum reads "I am not from the bottle. I am a special one.", a reference to Mourinho's famous quote upon signing as manager for Chelsea. On 6 June 2011, a new museum with improved and interactive exhibits opened behind

5130-425: The ground as a rival to Fulham. Noted football ground architect Archibald Leitch , who had also designed Ibrox , Celtic Park , Craven Cottage and Hampden Park , was hired to construct the stadium. In its early days, Stamford Bridge stadium was served by a small railway station, Chelsea and Fulham railway station , which was later closed after World War II bombing . Stamford Bridge was initially planned to have

5220-696: The ground measures approximately 103 metres (112.6 yd) long by 67 metres (73.2 yd) wide, with a couple metres of run-off space on all sides. The south stand has by far the most run-off space being unto 3.5 metres deep. When Stamford Bridge was redeveloped in the Ken Bates era, many additional features were added to the complex, including two hotels, apartments, bars, restaurants, the Chelsea Megastore, and an interactive visitor attraction called Chelsea World of Sport. These were completed in August 2001 at

5310-472: The home of the majority of matchday hospitality guests. Each box is also named after a former Chelsea player (names in brackets): In October 2010, a nine-foot statue of popular 1960s Chelsea forward Peter Osgood , created by Philip Jackson , was unveiled by Peter's widow, Lynn. It is positioned in a recess of the West Stand near the Millennium Reception. In January 2020, Chelsea FC unveiled

5400-488: The late 1970s, the freehold was separated from the club and when new Chelsea chairman Ken Bates bought the club for £ 1 in 1982, he did not buy the ground. A large chunk of the Stamford Bridge freehold was subsequently sold to property developers Marler Estates. The sale resulted in a long and acrimonious legal fight between Bates and Marler Estates. Marler Estates was ultimately forced into bankruptcy after

5490-444: The locations in the film, “ Chariots of Fire ”. LAC President Sir Arthur Gold appeared in the film’s depiction of the memorial service for Harold Abrahams . Today the club uses Barn Elms athletic track in west London as its base. London Athletic Club was the leading track and field club in the 1870s, illustrated by the fact that its members held every track world record between 220 yards to 10 miles during that decade. Walter Rye ,

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5580-404: The lower tier. Any proposal to enlarge the facility would necessitate demolition of the adjacent Chelsea F.C. Museum and Chelsea Health Club and Spa. For some Champions League matches, this stand operates at reduced capacity, some entrances being obstructed by the presence of TV outside-broadcast vehicles. The only covered stand when Stamford Bridge was renovated into a football ground in 1905,

5670-600: The meantime, Chelsea struggled in the league, and attendances fell and debts increased. The club was relegated to the Second Division in 1975 and again in 1979, narrowly avoiding the drop into the Third Division in 1983 before finally returning to the First Division a year later. The increase in the costs, combined with other factors, sent the club into decline. As a part of financial restructuring in

5760-460: The mile championship in a time of 4:44.0, with a winning margin of two yards. He also competed in the 880 yards (won by Ken McCrae of New South Wales in 2:06.8) and three miles championship (won by Charles Herbert of Victoria in 15:33.6), but was unplaced in both events. By virtue of his win in the mile event he was also awarded the Victorian 1893 mile championship title and, on 30 September 1893,

5850-425: The name 'Chelsea Football Club' should it ever move from the site where Stamford Bridge exists. The club proposed to buy back the freehold from CPO. In a vote held on 27 October 2011, its shareholders opted against selling their rights. On 4 May 2012, Chelsea announced a bid to purchase Battersea Power Station to build a 60,000-seater stadium on the site in conjunction with property developers Almacantar. However

5940-529: The new ground). The other sides were all open in a vast bowl and thousands of tons of material excavated from the building of the Piccadilly line provided high terracing for standing spectators exposed to the elements on the west side. In 1945, Stamford Bridge staged one of the most notable matches in its history. Soviet side FC Dynamo Moscow were invited to tour the United Kingdom at the end of

6030-401: The noise of supporters. The pitch, the turnstiles , and the naming rights of the club are now owned by Chelsea Pitch Owners , an organisation set up to prevent the stadium from being purchased by property developers. KSS Design Group (architects) designed the complete redevelopment of Stamford Bridge Stadium and its hotels, megastore, offices and residential buildings. Stamford Bridge was

6120-400: The original wall from the back of the Shed End terrace still stands and runs along the south side of the stadium. It has recently been decorated with lights and large images of Chelsea legends. Since 2005, it has been where away supporters are housed; they are allocated 3,000 tickets towards the east side, roughly half of the capacity of the stand. Peter Osgood 's ashes were laid to rest under

6210-532: The project, Ken Bates put Chelsea into a highly perilous financial position, primarily because of the repayment terms he had agreed to. Now complete, the stand is the primary external 'face' of the stadium, being the first thing fans see when entering the main gate on Fulham Road . The Main Entrance is flanked by hospitality entrances, formerly named after former Chelsea players Nigel Spackman and David Speedie . Signage at those entrances with those players' names

6300-698: The residential roads surrounding Stamford Bridge is likely to create congestion. Earls Court Exhibition Centre , White City , Battersea Power Station , the Imperial Road Gasworks (off the Kings Road on the Fulham and Chelsea border), and the Chelsea Barracks were alternative sites explored for a stadium rebuild. Under the Chelsea Pitch Owners (CPO) articles of association , the club would however relinquish

6390-414: The separation was particularly large because the long sides of the running track considerably exceeded the length of the football pitch. The stadium had a single stand for 5,000 spectators on the east side. Designed by Archibald Leitch , it was an exact replica of the Stevenage Road Stand he had previously built at the re-developed Craven Cottage (and the main reason why Fulham had chosen not to move into

6480-483: The sport, the Amateur Athletic Association . The club had a football section which was an early adopted of the association football laws. For the most part, the club only hosted matches between its members, but had a handful of games against external opposition between 1867 and 1870. The most notable result for the club was a 3-2 win over the Wanderers in 1868, but this was largely due to

6570-434: The venue for Soccer Aid , an annual charity match initially organised by singer Robbie Williams and actor Jonathan Wilkes . Since the 2010s, Chelsea F.C. Women , the club's women's affiliate , has played selected games at Stamford Bridge, including league games against domestic rivals as well as all UEFA Women's Champions League games. Results of FA Cup Finals at Stamford Bridge Stamford Bridge has also hosted

6660-523: The venue of the FA Cup Final from 1920 to 1922 , before being replaced by Wembley Stadium in 1923. It has staged ten FA Cup semi-finals , ten Charity Shield matches, and three England matches, the last in 1932. It was one of the home venues for the representative London XI team that played in the original Inter-Cities Fairs Cup . The team played the home leg of the two-legged final at Stamford Bridge, drawing 2–2 with FC Barcelona ; they lost

6750-451: The years, most recently in the 1990s when it was renovated into a modern, all-seater stadium. Stamford Bridge has hosted Charity Shield games. It has also hosted numerous other sports, such as cricket , rugby union , rugby league , speedway , greyhound racing , baseball and American football . The stadium's highest official attendance is 82,905, for a league match between Chelsea and Arsenal on 12 October 1935. "Stamford Bridge"

6840-553: Was at the West London running grounds held on 25 November 1865. On 16 January 1866 The Sporting Life reported that the Mincing Lane Athletic Club had been renamed the London Athletic Club, because “gentlemen from all parts of London and most of the principal pedestrians of the day [were] among its members”. Three years later, in 1869, the club moved its base to the newly-opened Lillie Bridge Grounds ,

6930-627: Was built near the Lillie Bridge Grounds , an older sports ground which had hosted the 1873 FA Cup Final and the first ever amateur boxing matches (among other things). It was initially offered to Fulham Football Club , but they turned it down for financial reasons. After considering the sale of the land to the Great Western Railway Company , the Mears decided to found their own football club, Chelsea, to occupy

7020-543: Was buried in his hometown of Berwick . He is commemorated there by a bronze statue on High Street and a reserve which includes several sporting grounds. Flack was also inducted into the Sport Australia and Athletics Australia halls of fame in 1985 and 2000, respectively. Born in London, England, Edwin Flack was five years old when his family migrated to Australia, to live in Berwick, Victoria . Soon after leaving

7110-712: Was commemorated on a 45-cent Australian postage stamp in the Olympic centenary year of 1996. The AOC named one of the streets alongside Stadium Australia at Homebush Bay in Sydney, the venue of the 2000 Summer Olympics , as Edwin Flack Avenue . In 1985, Flack was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame , and he was inducted into the Athletics Australia Hall of Fame in 2000. Athletics Australia's Edwin Flack Award, which

7200-428: Was given approval by Hammersmith and Fulham council on 19 July 1990. The re-building of the stadium commenced and successive building phases during the 1990s eliminated the original running track. The construction of the East Stand some 20 years earlier had begun the process of eliminating the track. All stands, now roofed and all-seater , are immediately adjacent to the pitch. This structure captures and concentrates

7290-522: Was in second place behind Frenchman Albin Lermusiaux —bronze medallist in the 1500 m run, whom Flack had already beaten—for much of the race. After 30–32 kilometres, the Frenchman dropped out and Flack was left in the lead, but 4–8 kilometres later (sources vary), Flack collapsed. In his deliriousness, when a Greek spectator tried to help him, Flack punched him to the ground. Flack

7380-590: Was in the chair and speakers included Lord Puttnam , producer of the Oscar-winning film “ Chariots of Fire ”, who was the guest of honour, the sports historian Philip Barker, and Vice-President, Dr John Disley . The LAC archives reside, with other track and field memorabilia of national importance, in the library of the National Union of Track Statisticians (NUTS) at Coombe Wood School, South Croydon , where they may be viewed by prior appointment with

7470-415: Was killed in a racing accident. In 1931, black cinders were laid onto the circuit suitable for use by speedway and athletics. A midget car meeting reportedly attracted a crowd of 50,000 people in 1948. The ground was used in 1980 for the first major day-night floodlit cricket match between Essex and West Indies (although organised by Surrey) which was a commercial success; the following year it hosted

7560-469: Was plagued with sea sickness . On the opening day of the Games he won his first race, the first heat of the 800 metres run , finishing in a time of 2 min 10.0 sec. On the second day he lined up against the American favourite, Arthur Blake , in the 1500 metres run . Running shoulder to shoulder with Blake in the final straight, Flack powered ahead near the end to win by more than five metres in

7650-458: Was removed from the course and transported to the stadium by a carriage, wherein he was tended to by Prince Nicholas . Flack also competed in the tennis singles and doubles at the Olympics. He lost in the first round of the singles to Aristidis Akratopoulos of Greece. In the doubles he was paired with an English friend, George S. Robertson . They reached the semi-finals after a walkover in

7740-591: Was removed in 2020, to be replaced by directional signage, meaning those entrances are no longer named after any player. The stand also features the largest concourse area in the stadium, it is also known as the 'Great Hall' and is used for many functions at Stamford Bridge, including the Chelsea Player of the Year ceremony. The aforementioned executive boxes, also known as the Millennium Suites, are

7830-455: Was sent to London to receive further training as an accountant with the firm Price, Waterhouse & Co (now PricewaterhouseCoopers ). Flack joined the London Athletic Club and was intent on attending the coming inaugural Olympics . Flack attended the Olympics as a member of the London Athletic Club, but competed in his Melburnian Hare and Hounds colours. Flack reached Athens after an uncomfortable six-day rail and sea trip, during which he

7920-448: Was then constructed at that end. It is named after former Chelsea director Matthew Harding , whose investment helped transform the club in the early 1990s before his death in a helicopter accident on 22 October 1996. His investment in the club enabled construction of the stand which was completed in time for the 1996–97 season . It has two tiers and accommodates most season-ticket holders, giving it an excellent atmosphere, especially in

8010-481: Was third in the Victorian 10 mile cross country championship in a time of 1:05.21. On 15 December 1894, Flack won both the 880 yards (2:07.2) and mile (4:49.4) Victorian 1894 championships and, earlier in the year, on 22 September 1894 was second in the 10-mile cross country championship (1:00.02). The 1894 event was Flack's last appearance in the Victorian Championships. The same year, Flack

8100-500: Was won that year in 2:04.4 and the previous year (1895) in 2:03.4. At the Australasian Championships of 1896, the mile run was won by New Zealander W. Bennett in a time of 4:28.6 – some 4.6s quicker than Flack's Olympic 1500 m time despite running 100 metres further. Just a day later, Flack tried for a treble with the marathon event despite never having run a race more than 16 kilometres. He

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