| Stadium Tour | |
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Every time Julie Williams travels abroad on holiday, she is driven by an inexplicable desire to visit famous sports venues: the Bernabeu in Madrid, the Olympic Stadium in Rome, the Stade de France in Paris… the list is endless. So we sent her on a whistle-stop tour of the UK to bring you a guide to some of the best sports grounds and venues we have to offer |
| Given the huge interest in sport in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, it comes as no surprise that some of the world's most spectacular stadiums are right here in the UK. London is one of the candidate cities for the 2012 Olympic bid, and this is just one example of how serious the UK is about sport. There are very few countries that can match the UK's sporting venues and a tour of some of the most famous grounds should be at the top of your 'to do' list when you arrive here. From Hampden Park in Glasgow, the oldest international football ground still holding events, to the City of Manchester Stadium, host of the 2002 Commonwealth Games, the visitor is spoiled for choice. And it is going to get even more interesting – the new Wembley stadium ('the venue of legends') will be finished in early 2006, in time to host the FA Cup Final. The most remarkable feature of the new stadium is the enormous arch that will dominate the London skyline. This will be yet another impressive stadium to add to your itinerary, but in the meantime, you can visit any of the venues described below. The spiritual home of cricket Cricket was first played at the current Lord's Cricket Ground in 1814. Legend has it that the hallowed turf was transplanted to the new venue, via an interim home in Regent's Park, from the original Lord's Cricket Ground in Dorset Square, Marylebone. Lord's has historically been regarded as the home of the game and the ground remains integral to world cricket to this day as it is belongs to the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). The cricket Code of Laws, which sets out rules central to the game, such as how far apart the wickets must be pitched, were laid down by MCC back in 1788. These laws are standard throughout the cricket world and are proof of the influence Lord's and MCC still have over international cricket. |
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Lord's has a capacity of 28,000 and hosts some of the best cricket in the world, including one-day internationals, domestic one-day finals and test matches. In addition, the ground is also home to Middlesex County Cricket Club who play in the County Championship against other top professional teams from across England and Wales. |
If the game itself does not bowl you over, the venue is still well worth a visit. Tours of the ground are run throughout the year and give visitors the opportunity to go behind the scenes and see inside the world-famous Pavilion, including the Long Room with its cricket works of art and the dressing rooms, where the likes of Graham Gooch and Ian Botham, and more recently Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan, have changed before a big match. A visit to the MCC Museum is included in the Lord's tour. As the world's oldest sporting museum, it has been collecting cricket memorabilia since 1864. The museum contains many exhibits of interest, one of the most famous being the Ashes urn. New items are added frequently and recent additions to the museum include the shirt won by England batsman Andrew Strauss in 2004, when he scored a century (100 runs) on his test debut against New Zealand. A venue fit for World Champions In 1907 the Rugby Football Union (RFU), under the direction of committee member William Williams, bought a site in the London suburb of Twickenham which was to become the home of the England Rugby Team. The land became known as 'Billy Williams' Cabbage Patch'. Over the years, the stadium has undergone dramatic transformations and now has world-class facilities and a capacity of 73,500. There are plans to further increase the capacity to 82,000 and to build a hotel, restaurant, leisure suite and an exhibition centre on the complex. Aside from international rugby tournaments, the stadium can also accommodate events such as international conferences and music concerts – U2 performed there in June 2005. Stadium tours take in the team dressing room, the players' tunnel and parts of the stadium that are not usually accessible to the public. Guides are highly knowledgeable about the stadium and the experience is guaranteed to be an enjoyable day out. Feel the heat on Henman Hill The rain may fall and our players may sometimes disappoint, but tennis, and Wimbledon in particular, has become an icon of Englishness. Each year, the Lawn Tennis Championships held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon attract more than 500,000 spectators, with many more left out in the cold after failing to get a ticket. The Club was founded in 1868 and the first meeting was held in 1877. The venue itself is truly impressive; even the most fanatical horticulturalist could not help but admire the magnificent floral displays. |
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The club runs museum tours from 19 March until 30 October except for the weeks when the championships are in progress (six weeks before the first Monday in August and lasting for around a fortnight). The experience includes tours of the infamous Wimbledon courts and a walk up to 'Henman Hill', where you will get a spectacular view over the city of London. The museum displays memorabilia from famous players and there is a theatre showing clips of some of the best tennis moments. The Theatre of Dreams Home to the world-famous football team, Manchester United, or the 'Red Devils' as they are also commonly known, Old Trafford is the largest league ground in England. The team has gained international success and, even when they are not winning, the performance they put on at Old Trafford never fails to entertain. The club moved to Old Trafford in 1910 and much development work has taken place over the years, making today's stadium a truly impressive ground to visit. The current capacity is 68,190 with plans to increase this to 76,000 by the start of the 2006/07 season. There are guided tours around the stadium every day and the museum charts the dazzling history of the richest football team in the world. Red or not, a visit to Old Trafford is a must for anyone serious about touring the UK's famous sports grounds. |
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21st century home Having opened in June 1999, Cardiff's Millennium Stadium is the baby of all the venues visited so far. Yet what it lacks in years it more than makes up for with its state-of-the-art stadium and world-class facilities. A multipurpose venue, the stadium is now the home of five sporting bodies: The Welsh Rugby Union, The Football Association, The Football League, The Football Association of Wales and the British Speedway Association. Costing a grand sum of £130 million to build, it was originally established to host the Rugby World Cup in 1999 and has since held many internationally recognised events including the FA Cup Final, the British Speedway Grand Prix and a number of concerts by top rock and pop artists, including a benefit concert for victims of the Asian tsunami disaster. One of the most fascinating features of the stadium is its retractable roof, a first in the history of UK sports stadiums. It holds 72,500 spectators and attracts more than 1.3 million visitors per year. It is no surprise that there are daily tours providing visitors with the chance to see behind the scenes of this magnificent stadium, including the changing rooms, the players' tunnel and the Royal Box. |
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