More than just a trivial place in which fans seek out the pleasure of watching their team play and hopefully win, football stadiums are cathedrals in which great drama can unfold. Indeed no football arena in England has ever confined the sensations of the sport as dramatically as Manchester City’s old Maine Road Stadium. Similar to the Teatro La Fenice Opera House hosting a performance of La traviata, Maine Road at its most compelling provided the set for passionate journeys that supplied audiences with capturing moments of emotion. In addition the …

There’s nothing straightforward about backing the Boro; the last 25 years has seen them reach six cup finals, achieve four promotions and suffer relegation four times, amongst controversial points deductions and ultimately being on the brink of collapse, had it not been for savior, Steve Gibson. Despite incredibly the last decade being the most successful in the clubs’ history at the Riverside, there is no doubt that Ayresome Park still holds a place in the hearts of the older generation of Middlesbrough fans.
Every true Boro fan has their own Ayresome memories, some …

Feethams may not have been the most glamorous of old stadiums but it was home to Darlington FC from their formation in 1883 until the move to the new Darlington Arena in 2003.
Originally a cricket ground the stadium had been used for football since the 1860’s but it was not until the formation of the Darlington club twenty years later that professional football was first played there.
The club grew quickly in the early years and they were at the forefront of the formation of the Northern League, becoming founder members in …

Those of you who saw the first leg of the recent Europa League fixture between Juventus and Fulham could be forgiven for wondering why Juve, one of Europe’s most prestigious clubs and the best supported in Italy were playing in such a small stadium.  The game was hosted at the Stadio Olimpico di Torino which has a capacity of just 27,944, hardly the surroundings one would expect for the grand ‘Old Lady’ of Turin. Juve were playing in this small stadium because the Stadio delle Apli, the clubs home since 1990 was closed in …

It was one of the most sophisticated football stadiums of its generation; It symbolised a new, democratic Germany; It was a stomping ground for some legendary Bayern sides.

The Olympic Stadium
The Olympic Stadium in Northern Munich was the centre-piece at the 1972 Olympics in which the “new” Germany aimed to show the world that it was a cut above the rest, both politically and one on the sporting field. My earliest memories of the Olympic Stadium didn’t really emerge until the late 90s, November 4th 1999 to be precise. One half …

IT WAS the icing on the cake after a turbulent decade; the day Rotherham United effectively became homeless, because of a petty, stubborn and bitter dispute with a former chairman of the club.
The Millers, a club who had entered administration twice in two years and were docked points with alarming regularity, announced their move away from Millmoor, their home since 1907, two years ago.
But to truly understand what drove Rotherham away from their home of over a century, away from their entire history and even away from their own town …

1993 proved to be the breaking of a longstanding barrier, as Olympique de Marseille became the first French side to win the European Cup, a full 37 years after Frenchman Gabriel Hanot invented the competition.
A solitary goal from Basile Boli was enough for l’OM as they sent the superstars of A.C Milan back to Italy empty handed, much to despair of their vocal travelling support.

LOYAL FANS: Marseille supporters, draped in blue and white, cheer their team on.
The pre-match talk had been focused on two subjects. Firstly, whether Marseille could banish …

When Glasgow was chosen to host the 1960 European Cup final, the city expected to see two top teams from the continent battling it out for the right to be crowned champions of Europe. The city got their wish, and a little bit extra.
This was familiar territory for the Real Madrid side of the late 1950’s as they had not only competed in the first four European Cup finals, but they came out on top on every occasion with wins over Stade De Remis twice and once over Italian giants …