Some grounds are stunning. Some grounds aren’t so stunning. Some grounds take you to the guts of the English recreation. And a few go away you feeling such as you’re on the periphery.
However every of them holds the soul of their group and the hopes and desires of the 1000’s of people that make the pilgrimage there each weekend.
I’ve accomplished the journey of a lifetime for Mail Sport. It is one thing I’ve wished to do for so long as I can bear in mind and on April 1, 2025, I did it. I accomplished the 92.
It is my love letter to English soccer, and you possibly can learn the total record right here – however at the moment we’re specializing in League One.
Now that the fixtures are out, it is time to begin planning which grounds you need to tick off this season, the place that you must return to …and the place you are higher off avoiding altogether.
Learn on to search out out who comes out on prime, the place your crew ranks and every part else in between – then let me know what you assume.
twenty fourth: Stadium MK, MK Dons (general rank: 91/92)
Opened: 2007 Capability: 30,303
I do know it’s a tender goal however I actually don’t care a lot for Stadium MK. Or for MK Dons themselves for that matter, even when they’re inviting supporters to revamp their membership crest and rethink their identify.
The membership was born below a nasty signal when it was jemmied out of Wimbledon and moved to Milton Keynes in 2003 and it has by no means been in a position to shake the stigma since. The stadium matches the membership.
I do know it’s a tender goal however I actually don’t care a lot for Stadium MK, house of MK Dons
Its black seats lend it a sinister air and it is a soulless, gloomy, somewhat forbidding place
It’s a soulless, faceless, gloomy place. Greater than that, there’s something somewhat forbidding about it.
Its 30,000 capability is simply too large for the membership it hosts and, other than the fun of the native KFC and McDonald’s, there may be little to advocate in its rapid surrounds.
Its black seats lend it a sinister air, too. It’s the sort of stadium solely its mom might love. And it doesn’t have a mom.
Except you need to do the 92, give it a miss.
twenty third: Broadfield Stadium, Crawley City (general: 86/92)
Opened: 1997 Capability: 6,134
Not an terrible lot to relish concerning the Broadfield Stadium, to be trustworthy.
Respectable followers, after all, similar to at each membership, however Crawley City’s house is a little bit of a contemporary monstrosity, subsequent to a roundabout exterior city on the A23.
The place has had a nasty vibe because it was acquired by Wagmi United LLC, a bunch of US cryptocurrency buyers
For those who go to Broadfield Stadium, I feel you would possibly doubt that Crawley are even a League Two aspect
The place has had a nasty vibe because it was acquired by Wagmi United LLC, a bunch of US cryptocurrency buyers. Wagmi, by the best way, stands for ‘We’re All Gonna Make It’.
For those who go to the Broadfield Stadium, I feel you would possibly doubt even when they’re in League Two.
I had enjoyable after I visited as a result of I used to be within the away finish with Stockport followers however I’m not in any hurry to return.
twenty second: JobServe Neighborhood Stadium, Colchester United (general: 84/92)
Opened: 2008 Capability: 10,105
The employees on the membership are nice, the stewards are pleasant, there’s loads of parking, there’s a Wendy’s subsequent door and the house followers, largely ranged in a stand behind one of many objectives, make an outstanding fist of making an environment.
However this stadium on a roundabout on the A12 in the course of a retail park continues to be somewhat a bleak place to look at soccer.
This stadium on a roundabout on the A12 in the course of a retail park continues to be somewhat a bleak place to look at soccer
The house followers, largely ranged in a stand behind one of many objectives, make an outstanding fist of making an environment
It in all probability didn’t assist that I went on a dank March evening a couple of weeks in the past when a wispy fog lingered within the dim floodlight glare however there was one thing ethereally gloomy concerning the JobServe Neighborhood Stadium.
The empty corridors and the cavernous suites lent it a slight really feel of the Overlook Lodge on the within. On the skin, the 4 corners of the stadium are open, which makes for particularly bitter nights within the winter.
House is house and there was nonetheless loads of drama and keenness in Colchester’s 1-0 victory over Chesterfield – the match I noticed – but it surely got here regardless of the stadium, not due to it.
twenty first: Poundland Bescot Stadium, Walsall (general: 83/92)
Opened: 1990 Capability: 10,863
The Bescot Stadium was the primary of the technology of identikit new-build arenas I went to and there may be not, frankly, a lot to advocate it other than the loyalty of the followers.
It’s near the M6 and it’s a seven-minute stroll to Walsall station, so you will get away from it rapidly, which some would say is a bonus.
The Bescot Stadium was the primary of the technology of identikit new-build arenas I went to and there may be not, frankly, a lot to advocate it other than the loyalty of the followers
twentieth: The Croud Meadow, Shrewsbury City (general: 81/92)
Opened: 2007 Capability: 9,875
Homosexual Meadow, the previous house of Shrewsbury City, was among the best grounds in our prime 4 divisions.
Abutted by a McDonald’s and a TK Maxx on the outer fringes of the city, it looks like a disembodied place, separated from its group, purposeful however uninspired
It might need flooded once in a while due to its place on the banks of the River Severn but it surely was a fantastic previous floor and the custom of a boatman taking to a coracle to fish wayward pictures that cleared the roof of the stand out of the river was probably the most cherished peculiarities in our recreation.
The Croud Meadow is altogether extra prosaic. Abutted by a McDonald’s and a TK Maxx on the outer fringes of the city, it looks like a disembodied place, separated from its group, purposeful however uninspired.
nineteenth: EV Charger Factors Stadium, Cheltenham City (general: 71/92)
Opened: 1927 Capability: 6,923
It’s a excessive bar in today when cash counts much more than heritage and funds are fraught on the flawed finish of the EFL however the EV Charger Factors Stadium might have essentially the most chequered naming rights previous of any stadium within the nation.
We must always simply stick to Whaddon Street actually but it surely was renamed the Abbey Enterprise Stadium in 2009, then it grew to become The World of Smile Stadium, then the LCI Rail Stadium in 2016–17, then the Jonny-Rocks Stadium in 2018–19, and the Utterly-Suzuki Stadium in 2022 and now its present wonderful and evocative identify.
EV Charger Factors Stadium might have essentially the most chequered naming rights previous of any stadium within the nation
It’s a disgrace as a result of it’s a fantastic little floor that gives a distinct focus in a city dominated by horse racing
I hope they bought some huge cash for these sponsorships as a result of they make the membership look silly and low-cost and rip chunks of its id away from it.
Once more, I do know it’s in all probability not financially viable to eliminate them however I hate stadium naming rights. I’d ban them if I might. Soccer survived for a century with out them so why not now?
It’s a disgrace as a result of it’s a fantastic little floor that gives a distinct focus in a city dominated by horse racing.
18th: Priestfield Stadium, Gillingham (general: 70/92)
Opened: 1893 Capability: 11,582
I bear in mind the journey as a lot as something.
Kent is perhaps the county I’ve been to least and so it felt barely unique driving down the M2 and seeing the Priestfield Stadium not removed from the River Medway.
Some might rattling Priestfield however Gillingham have performed right here for greater than 100 years and that weight of historical past counts as a lot as something if you go to a stadium
Some might rattling Priestfield however Gillingham have performed right here for greater than 100 years and that weight of historical past counts as a lot as something if you go to a stadium.
Nonetheless exhausting golf equipment might attempt to replicate custom with compelled rituals, you possibly can’t cheat historical past.
seventeenth: Hayes Lane, Bromley (general: 69/92)
Opened: 1938 Capability: 5,000
Hayes Lane is a type of stadiums that feels extensive open to the weather. It’s the other of a decent, enclosed floor like Loftus Street but it surely’s nonetheless a pleasure to go to.
Hayes Lane is a type of stadiums that feels extensive open to the weather. It’s the other of a decent, enclosed floor like Loftus Street but it surely’s nonetheless a pleasure to go to
I went with Stockport when Bromley had been within the Nationwide League and stood on the open terrace, which was reserved for away followers.
It was a wild night in February 2022 and it felt as if the wind was blowing horizontal however County gained 3-1 and a steward went out of his option to carry me a programme from the place they had been being bought within the house finish, so it felt like a golden evening all spherical.
sixteenth: Peninsula Stadium, Salford Metropolis (general: 68/92)
Opened: 1978 Capability: 5,032
The gamers who comprise the Class of 92 had been the gamers on the coronary heart of one of many biggest tales I ever lined – the Manchester United Treble of 1998-99 – so maybe it shouldn’t be a shock that I loved my go to to Moor Lane, now rebranded because the Peninsula Stadium.
Many dislike and mistrust the best way Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs and the remainder took over a non-League membership and oversaw its rise to the Soccer League however I like what they’ve finished at Salford.
It is a neat little floor and it’s been properly modernised with out shedding all its character
Many dislike and mistrust the best way Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs and the remainder took over a non-League membership and oversaw its rise to the Soccer League however I like what they’ve finished at Salford
It’s a neat little floor and it’s been properly modernised with out shedding all its character.
I went to a League Two play-off semi-final there a few years in the past when Salford performed Stockport and the environment was wonderful.
Stockport misplaced the primary leg however made the ultimate. In order that helped.
fifteenth: Blundell Park, Grimsby City (general: 63/92)
Opened: 1899 Capability: 9,031
I’m not saying that Metal’s Cornerhouse fish and chip restaurant is one of the best factor about Cleethorpes however consuming fish contemporary from the North Sea definitely made my go to to Blundell Park extra memorable.
Floor experiences are about much more than the sport. They’re about going together with your mates, getting a way of the local people, embedding your self in custom and the sport, too
Floor experiences are about much more than the sport. They’re about going together with your mates, they’re about getting a way of the local people, they’re about embedding your self in custom and so they’re concerning the recreation, too.
I liked Blundell Park for all these causes.
14th: Memorial Floor, Bristol Rovers (general: 58/92)
Opened: 1921 Capability: 9,834
A unusual mish-mash of a floor whose structure betrays its origins as a rugby stadium, the Memorial Floor continues to be an honest place to look at soccer.
Somewhat the sort of visible chaos you get at this place with the Common Insulation Stand remoted like a widow stand on a part of the one touchline and the West Stand wanting extra like a cricket pavilion than the monotonous uniformity you get at so many new-builds.
House owners are all the time threatening to maneuver to a brand new web site however the Memorial Floor, successor to Eastville, nonetheless survives.
A unusual mish-mash of a floor whose structure betrays its origins as a rugby stadium, the Memorial Floor continues to be an honest place to look at soccer
House owners are all the time threatening to maneuver to a brand new web site however the Memorial Floor, successor to Eastville, nonetheless survives
thirteenth: Meadow Lane, Notts County (general: 47/92)
Opened: 1910 Capability: 19,841
The primary time I went to Meadow Lane, it was to see Manchester United play a top-flight recreation there.
The away part was uncovered and the stadium had quirks and character. It’s nonetheless a beautiful floor to go to and it has advanced into a formidable trendy enviornment that has loads of nods to its wealthy historical past and its standing as one of many founder members of the Soccer League.
Its location, on the opposite aspect of the River Trent to the Metropolis Floor, will not be fairly as spectacular as Forest’s, but it surely’s nonetheless a venue that blows the breath of soccer historical past throughout your face.
Meadow Lane is an excellent floor to go to and it is advanced into a formidable trendy enviornment
twelfth: Highbury Stadium, Fleetwood City (general: 46/92)
Opened: 1939 Capability: 5,137
Like Leeds, Morecambe and Grimsby City, going to look at Fleetwood is enhanced by native fish and chips.
For those who can’t get good fish and chips in Fleetwood, you’re not attempting exhausting sufficient and I dined royally within the Granada Fish Bar earlier than heading to the Highbury Stadium.
The bottom will not be fairly as august as Arsenal’s previous stadium but it surely has a chic, trendy important stand and a fierce native id.
The membership’s nickname is The Fishermen and the followers chant so much concerning the Cod Military. It’s an incredible time out by the seaside.
This Highbury will not be fairly as august as Arsenal’s previous stadium but it surely has a chic, trendy important stand and a fierce native id
eleventh: The Hive, Barnet (general: 44/92)
Opened: 2013 Capability: 6,500
The Hive flirts with soullessness however nearly evades it.
For a begin it’s one of many solely stadiums that means that you can watch the motion, fleetingly, from the London Underground.
The Jubilee Line travels previous it on an embankment between Stanmore and Queensbury and the open corners mean you can gaze in on the recreation.
I’ve been inside a couple of instances, too, most lately to see Stockport lose an FA Cup tie there in December 2018, and it was exhausting to not heat to the imaginative and prescient of the bottom as a hub for group sport even when it appears a bit like a Lego stadium.
The Hive is one of many solely stadiums that means that you can watch the motion, fleetingly, from the London Underground
It was exhausting to not heat to the imaginative and prescient of the bottom as a hub for group sport
tenth: Mornflake Stadium, Crewe Alexandra (general: 42/92)
Opened: 1906 Capability: 10,109
I’ve bought a whole lot of affection for Gresty Street. On a Friday evening on the finish of September 1983, it was the place I noticed Micky Quinn rating a hat-trick for Stockport County on the house of our bitter rivals.
Gresty Street is a greater stadium now than it was in 1983, which isn’t a excessive bar, and it has a greater proprietor than it did then
It was one in every of my finest soccer experiences, seeing Quinn leaping on to the railings on the Gresty Street Finish after scoring his third, shaking his fists at us in triumph as we leapt about on the terracing.
If there was footage of the followers’ wild celebrations now, the caption would possibly say ‘limbs’.
Gresty Street is a greater stadium now than it was then, which isn’t a excessive bar, and it has a greater proprietor than it did then. However it might probably’t be straightforward dwelling within the shadow of such mighty neighbours.
ninth: SMH Group Stadium, Chesterfield (general: 41/92)
Opened: 2010 Capability: 10,400
I used to have a little bit of a vendetta towards the SMH Group Stadium. Maybe not a vendetta, however definitely a prejudice.
I liked the previous floor at Saltergate however when the membership moved to the brand new stadium and referred to as it the b2net Stadium, it felt as if it had bought its soul.
Since 2009, it has additionally been referred to as the Proact Stadium and the Method Stadium.
I liked the previous floor at Saltergate however when the membership moved to the brand new stadium and referred to as it the b2net Stadium, it felt as if it had bought its soul
I met the homeowners, who’re native businessmen and clearly have the membership’s finest pursuits at coronary heart, and took in a recreation and out of the blue the SMH Group Stadium had new life and character and soul
However attending to know a membership typically modifications your view of a spot. I spent a little bit of time there earlier this season after I went to look at Kieron Dyer, who’s a coach on the membership, and Paul Prepare dinner, the supervisor, at work.
I met the homeowners, who’re native businessmen and clearly have the membership’s finest pursuits at coronary heart, and took in a recreation and out of the blue the SMH Group Stadium had new life and character and soul breathed into it for me.
It’s a membership on the up and it’s a membership that cares about its followers, and so my prejudice towards the SMH Group Stadium isn’t any extra.
eighth: Boundary Park, Oldham Athletic (general: 40/92)
Opened: 1904 Capability: 13,186
I bear in mind the chilly at Boundary Park. I feel lots of people do.
For a very long time, I laboured below the misapprehension that it was the best floor within the Soccer League when, actually, that distinction belongs to the Hawthorns.
Boundary Park simply feels prefer it ought to be the best. It’s not essentially the most stunning of stadiums but it surely’s bought some grand previous character and it’s embedded on the coronary heart of its group.
It simply so occurs a few of my finest mates are Oldham followers, too, so I used to be delighted once they got here up from the Nationwide League.
It’s a deal with to have the bottom again within the 92.
I bear in mind the chilly at Boundary Park. I feel lots of people do
It’s not essentially the most stunning of stadiums but it surely’s bought some grand previous character and it’s embedded on the coronary heart of its group
seventh: Abbey Stadium, Cambridge United (general: 32/92)
Opened: 1932 Capability: 8,024
I made it to the Abbey Stadium for the primary time on Boxing Day final yr for the sport towards Studying.
Cambridge have misplaced their battle towards relegation to League Two however the noise contained in the Abbey Stadium would have put loads of Premier League grounds to disgrace
I walked to the bottom down Lower Throat Lane and stood on the terraces on the Newmarket Street Finish the place the singing is at its loudest and the place the names and shirts of the celebrated early Nineteen Nineties crew of John Beck that included Dion Dublin are painted on the wall in the back of the stand.
Cambridge might need misplaced their battle towards relegation to League Two however the noise inside would have put loads of Premier League grounds to disgrace.
sixth: Rodney Parade, Newport County (general: 28/92)
Opened: 1877 Capability: 8,722
A Cardiff taxi driver as soon as advised me that one of the best fights in Wales occur exterior Newport railway station late on Saturday nights. He stated he typically took a break simply to go and watch the motion.
Rodney Parade’s a fantastic place to look at sport, too. Not removed from the banks of the River Usk, it’s a contemporary stadium with remnants of character that come into its personal when the giants come to play for the FA Cup.
Like Newport’s railway station, Rodney Parade will not be a spot for the faint-hearted
Not removed from the banks of the River Usk, it’s a contemporary stadium with remnants of character that come into its personal when the giants come to play for the FA Cup
I used to be there a couple of years in the past when Manchester Metropolis visited within the fifth spherical and after the sport, the best way out for followers took them previous the open home windows of the small altering rooms behind one of many objectives the place you might hear the celebrations of Pep Guardiola’s crew booming out into the South Wales evening.
Just like the railway station, it’s not a spot for the faint-hearted.
fifth: County Floor, Swindon City (general: 27/92)
Opened: 1892 Capability: 15,547
There have been greater than 20 years between my first go to to the County Floor and my most up-to-date, a 0-0 draw with Accrington Stanley in direction of the top of March. It wasn’t one of the best recreation however I had one of the best time.
I’d had per week of being abused on social media by Newcastle followers (which is a part of the job and, sure, I agree, I don’t need to learn it) and going to Swindon felt like a beautiful breeze blowing on my face.
For a begin, there have been greater than 7,000 supporters there, for a fourth-tier recreation which meant nothing to each groups when it comes to promotion or relegation. The environment was vigorous and passionate and the bottom has character and heat, even when one of many ends was closed.
At half-time, I watched a DS Lively match between lads with Down Syndrome representing Swindon and Bristol Metropolis and it was a pleasure. It was a pleasure to see their uncomplicated pleasure in the great thing about soccer and the best way they celebrated their objectives and their talent and the best way they appeared for his or her mother and father within the stands once they scored and the best way they supported their team-mates.
The match was a reminder of what it means for a soccer membership to be on the coronary heart of its group. A stadium is about greater than only a recreation.
My most up-to-date journey to the County Floor was a 0-0 draw with Accrington Stanley in direction of the top of March. It wasn’t one of the best recreation however I had one of the best time
The environment was vigorous and passionate and the bottom has character and heat
4th: Train Stadium, Harrogate City (general: 19/92)
Opened: 1920 Capability: 5,021
Perhaps there’s a little bit of recency bias in placing Harrogate within the prime 20.
Wetherby Street, now referred to as the Train Stadium, was the bottom that accomplished my 92 after I went to look at them beat Tranmere Rovers there in April and so I’m all the time going to really feel nostalgic about being right here.
It’s a captivating, quirky floor, cobbled collectively in a means that may not fulfill an aesthete however I had a superb evening right here.
Wetherby Street, now referred to as the Train Stadium, was the bottom that accomplished my 92 – alongside two previous mates and colleagues who joined me for a particular evening in Harrogate
It’s a captivating, quirky floor, cobbled collectively in a means that may not fulfill an aesthete however I had a superb evening right here
My mates and I stood on the raucous, seething Kop behind one of many objectives. It was solely six or seven rows deep however there have been sufficient surges to make it really feel like being again within the 80s
My mates and I stood on the raucous, seething Kop behind one of many objectives within the first half. It was solely six or seven rows deep however there have been sufficient surges to make it really feel like being again within the 80s.
We moved to a extra sedate spot in seats behind the opposite purpose after the interval. There have been solely simply over 3,000 followers there but it surely felt like 10 instances that.
Tranmere introduced 500 of these supporters from Merseyside for a midweek bottom-of-the-table recreation in League Two, which was an incredible effort.
And it was a fantastic match, a 3-2 win for the house aspect that just about definitely assured their security from the specter of relegation.
A few previous mates got here with me to make the event even higher and though there have been no fish and chips, I had breakfast at Betty’s the subsequent morning, and an eclair for dessert, to make the expertise full.
third: Prenton Park, Tranmere Rovers (general: 14/92)
Opened: 1912 Capability: 15,012
Prenton Park grew to become a beloved second house for me for some time.
Like Stockport, they used to play their house video games on a Friday evening at one time and that supplied an opportunity to go and watch them below the lights.
I liked Prenton Park and its sense of group and its noble previous stands from the beginning and after I began work as a trainee on the Every day Submit and the Liverpool Echo within the early 90s, I bought to cowl Tranmere within the glory days below Jonny King when John Aldridge, who had returned from Actual Sociedad, was scoring for enjoyable.
Tranmere Rovers’ Prenton Park grew to become a beloved second house for me for some time
The environment inside the bottom on a few of these nights on the Wirral was electrical. After I was a information reporter on the Echo, I even needed to go spherical to the home of Tranmere’s midfielder Kenny Irons in Norris Inexperienced to take a look at a narrative.
Kenny had been enjoying soccer in his entrance backyard and kicked a ball over a hedge into subsequent door’s backyard. His neighbour was an previous woman and she or he wouldn’t give Kenny his ball again.
After I pitched up on his doorstep, he noticed the humorous aspect.
2nd: Wham Stadium, Accrington Stanley (general: 12/92)
Opened: 1968 Capability: 5,278
For as soon as, I can flip a blind eye to the renaming of the bottom because the Wham Stadium.
That’s as a result of I understand how a lot love and dedication and money and time the Stanley proprietor, Andy Holt, has put into the resurrection of his native crew since he cleared its money owed in 2015 when it was on the point of folding.
For as soon as, I can flip a blind eye to the renaming of the bottom because the Wham Stadium
The bottom has improved out of all recognition since Andy Holt grew to become concerned and any go to to it’s a go to to the guts of the distinction one man could make to a membership and a group
Andy doesn’t get a lot thanks for it and is planning to depart the operating of the membership on the finish of the season however he’ll bequeath a long-lasting legacy on this a part of Lancashire.
The bottom has improved out of all recognition since he grew to become concerned and any go to to it’s a go to to the guts of the distinction one man could make to a soccer membership and a group.
Visionaries like Andy are few and much between in soccer and the sport can be poorer for his absence.
1st: Holker Road, Barrow (general: 6/92)
Opened: 1909 Capability: 6,500
There’s a frontier really feel about Barrow and about its Holker Road floor that makes it particular to go to.
There’s a frontier really feel about Barrow and its Holker Road floor that makes it particular to go to
I’d somewhat take restricted views and a floor with character and love and keenness than one of many identikit tin bowls which can be nearer to the norm within the decrease leagues
A member of the Barrow floor employees fixes a light-weight that had been hit by the match ball
It was uncooked and loud and industrial and actual. It felt like a throwback to the best way soccer was once earlier than the invasion of vacationers and corporates and it was all the higher for that
It’s not for everybody. I do know away followers complain, with some justification, about restricted views however I’d somewhat take restricted views and a floor with character and love and keenness than one of many identikit tin bowls which can be nearer to the norm within the decrease leagues.
Holker Road was my ninetieth floor out of the 92 and I liked every part about it from the friendliness of the membership employees and the followers and the steak pie I purchased from the Farm Store inside the bottom.
I used to be there in late February for the Cumbrian derby towards Carlisle United and the environment was magnificent.
It was uncooked and loud and industrial and actual. It felt like a throwback to the best way soccer was once earlier than the invasion of vacationers and corporates and it was all the higher for that.
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