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 Interactive map of Cardiff City Stadium | |
| Full name | Cardiff City Stadium |
|---|---|
| Location | Cardiff, Wales |
| Public transit |  Ninian ParkGrangetown |
| Owner | Cardiff City |
| Operator | Cardiff City Stadium Ltd |
| Capacity | 33,280[1][2] |
| Surface | GrassMaster |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | September 2007 |
| Built | 2007–2009 |
| Opened | 22 July 2009; 16 years ago (2009-07-22) |
| Renovated | 2014 |
| Construction cost | £48 million |
| Architect | Arup Associates |
| Tenants | |
| Cardiff Blues (2009–2012) Cardiff City (2009–present) Wales national team (2009–present) | |
TheCardiff City Stadium (Welsh:Stadiwm Dinas Caerdydd) is a stadium in theLeckwith area ofCardiff, Wales. It is the home ofCardiff City and theWales national team.
Following expansion of the Ninian Stand in July 2014, the stadium officially holds 33,280 supporters. The stadium replacedNinian Park as Cardiff City's home ground in 2009, and is managed by Cardiff City Stadium Ltd., which is owned by Cardiff City Football Club Holdings Ltd. It also hosted the home matches of theCardiff Blues rugby union team until the 2011–12 season, although originally the Blues had a lease until 2029.[3][4][5][6][7]
After theMillennium Stadium, it is the second largest stadium in Cardiff and in Wales. The stadium is part of theLeckwith development, which also includes theCardiff International Sports Stadium. A branded sponsor name will be assigned as and when the naming rights are sold. The stadium was officially opened on 22 July 2009, with Cardiff City playing afriendly match againstCeltic.[8][9]
The stadium was built on the site of the formerCardiff Athletics Stadium and forms part of the largerLeckwith development. The 60-acre (240,000 m2) development was estimated to cost £100m and include construction of the following:
First mooted as a long term target by former ownerSam Hammam, the new stadium first gained public approval after a meeting between Hammam and thenCardiffLord MayorRussell Goodway in January 2002, giving the club 12 months to agree a planning and business plan.[11] In November 2002 the club andCardiff Council signed an outline agreement for the development, subject to later agreement for outline planning permission.[12]
In March 2003, stories began to emerge that the Chief Executive of theMillennium Stadium wanted Cardiff City to use their stadium instead, and saw no viable plan for two 50,000+ seat capacity stadia in the Welsh capital.[13] This was increased in light of Cardiff City's promotion to the Championship in May 2003 with local fears over traffic and access problems.[14]
However, on 20 August 2003 Cardiff councillors gave unanimous approval to the stadium plans, although expressed concerns over the need and scale of the retail development but understood its need to fund the stadium.[15] On 9 September 2003 theWelsh Assembly gave approval to the plan.[16]
In April 2004, Cardiff Council gave the first phase covering the stadium with a capacity of 30,000 seats and new athletics track approval.[17] The next phase was held up by various legal and technical delays from November 2004[18] to January 2005, when the council gave approval to three detailed plans for the retail development, subject to agreement of suitable underlying business plans.[19]
Although development could have then started in May 2005, the underlying need for seed financing revealed the financial status of Cardiff City football club as poor, with over £30 million of debt and the need to sell star player and club captainGraham Kavanagh toWigan Athletic F.C. in March 2005. It was also revealed that players and staff had not been paid for a month as the club struggled to honour a wage bill believed to be £750,000 a month, while auditors were looking at possible cutbacks.[20] On 1 March 2005 the club delayed the development until at least July 2005.[21]
After a 1–0 home loss toSheffield United and a mobbing by fans, on 6 March 2005 Hammam apologised to fans, and released club accounts which showed club debt at March 2004 at £29.6 million.[21]
After a summer sale of players, the entry of formerLeeds United chairmanPeter Ridsdale and numerous rumours, the development was given a period of 90 days from 31 December 2005 by Cardiff Council to finalise the underlying business plan.[22] On 31 January 2006 the developers securedAsda as the lead retailer of the new development, which enabled the final funding of the stadium to start.[23] This allowed the council timetable to extend by four months to September 2006.[24]
On 24 October 2006,Laing O'Rourke won the contract to develop the 30,000-seat stadium, which Ridsdale stated would be ready for December 2008.[25] On 27 November 2006 Cardiff Council approved the business plan for the stadium, and granted a 125-year lease for the land on which the stadium was to sit upon, allowing the final planning approval to be gained from the council authority and the office of theDeputy Prime Minister.[26]
In March 2007, the stadium plans were altered to allow construction to begin as soon as possible. To minimise construction costs, the 30,000 capacity was reduced to 25,000 by removing three-quarters of the second tier of seating, however the plans allow the option of completing the second tier to reach the 30,000 capacity if required.[27] The former chairman of Cardiff City, Steve Borley, said in March 2008 that "We are working to raise the capacity and right now it stands at 26,830. The task is to raise that even further, and we believe it could be almost 28,000 when the stadium opens."[28]
When work finally commenced Peter Ridsdale stated that he expected the stadium to be ready by Christmas 2008 but it was finally completed in May 2009. Although some believe this slight delay was caused by Cardiff City's ongoing legal action with Langston, it was actually caused by unexpectedly poor weather during the summer of 2007.[29]
Land clearance started on 21 February 2007,[30] while on 9 May, final finances were put in place for Laing O'Rourke to bring equipment on site and start construction.[31]
Developers and contractors
The lead developer was PMG Developments, a Cardiff-based property developer led by Cardiff City director Paul Guy and former Walesrugby captainMike Hall. Laing O'Rourke were contracted to build all the highway improvements necessary to cope with the increased capacity, as well as the demolition of the Cardiff Athletics Stadium and the construction of the retail park. Cowlin was picked as the preferred contractor for the new athletic stadium. Required analysis of soil and water for the site was performed by TES Bretby, part of the Environmental Services Group Ltd.[citation needed]
Schedule
Leckwith Road was widened to a dual carriageway over 18 months, with the scheme allowing for an extra access lane to become available on matchdays.[citation needed]
The plan required the demolition of the previous Cardiff Athletics Stadium, of which the council insisted the replacement is built before the start of construction on the new football stadium. This was to avoid the city being without a major athletics facility for any length of time.[citation needed]
Work was scheduled to begin on the new athletics stadium in January 2007 with the track and throwing areas expected to be open for use by the end of July 2007. The new athletics stadium was expected to be completed by October 2007 and it was hoped that Cardiff City F.C.'s stadium would be able to open in December 2008, however the stadium finally completed in May 2009.[29]
Detailed timetable
In August 2007, chairmanPeter Ridsdale revealed that the club had reduced a £24 million debt to Swiss-based financiers Langston agreed under the chairmanship ofSam Hammam to £15 million, by agreeing to sell the stadium's naming rights to Langston for £9 million.[33] The stadium name was unveiled in March 2009 as Cardiff City Stadium and on 1 May, the official logo of the Cardiff City Stadium and the management company Cardiff City Stadium Ltd was unveiled.[34][35]
The stadium was completed several weeks ahead of schedule and was officially opened with a pre-season friendly againstCeltic on 22 July 2009, which ended in a 0–0 draw.[36][37] There were two games played in the stadium prior to this: a Cardiff City Legends game on 4 July,[10] and a friendly againstChasetown on 10 July. The firstleague game was played on 8 August 2009, a 4–0 win for Cardiff againstScunthorpe United.
Wales played at the Cardiff City Stadium for the first time on 14 November 2009 againstScotland, which they won 3–0. On 10 August 2010, theFootball Association of Wales announced that it would also play at the Stadium in Wales' opening game of theUEFA Euro 2012 qualifiers againstBulgaria on 8 October 2010.[38]
On 8 May 2012, Cardiff Blues confirmed they would leave the Stadium to return toCardiff Arms Park for the 2012–13 season and onwards.[39]
On 14 June 2012Vincent Tan, Malaysian co-owner of Cardiff City FC, set out plans for an additional £35m investment in the Championship football club. This investment was to pay off debts, upgrade the training facilities to Premier League standards and spend £12m upgrading the stadium's capacity by 8,000 seats from 26,828 to around 35,000.[40] On 1 August,Peter's Pie became the official sponsor of the Family Stand on a two-year deal.[41] In April 2013 it was announced by a Cardiff City director that the capacity at the stadium could be expanded to 35,000 before the beginning of the 2014/15 season.[42] Extra seats were added around the stadium during the first few months of the 2013–14 season, increasing the capacity to around 28,000.[citation needed]
In August 2013 the club announced it had submitted a planning application to the local authority for the first phase of a stadium expansion.[43] Phase 1 will entail adding a second tier to the Ninian Stand increasing the capacity to approximately 33,280. 5,150 extra seats are to be provided, including extra commercial and hospitality facilities catering for around 1500.[citation needed]
On 9 October 2013 the local authority granted planning permission for this first phase.[44] The stadium expansion was completed at the beginning of August, a few weeks before the stadium was due to host theUEFA Super Cup. At a later stage, phases 2 and 3 of the development will see up to 3,000 seats added to both the Canton and Grange ends of the ground, bringing the overall capacity up to around 38,000.[citation needed]
However, in March 2015, it was announced that the Ninian Stand extension was to be shut for the2015–16 season due to poor ticket sales, dropping the capacity to 27,978.[45]
On 19 September 2007, it was announced that Cardiff City F.C. and Cardiff Blues had signed a Heads of Terms agreement for Cardiff Blues to become tenants of Cardiff City.[7] On 24 May 2008, the two clubs signed a contract officially finalising the deal. The licence agreement was set at 20 years, meaning Cardiff Blues would leaveCardiff Arms Park and play their home games at the stadium until 2029.[3]
As well as being the new home for Cardiff City, the stadium has since become the home of theWales national football team except for the international friendly againstLuxembourg which was atParc y Scarlets inLlanelli, twoUEFA Euro 2012 qualifying Group G home matches with the first againstEngland which was at theMillennium Stadium inCardiff and the second againstSwitzerland which was at theLiberty Stadium inSwansea, an international friendly againstBosnia and Herzegovina which was at Parc y Scarlets in Llanelli, another international friendly, which was againstAustria and a2014 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group A match againstCroatia, both of which were at the Liberty Stadium in Swansea.
On 12 August 2014, the stadium hosted the2014 UEFA Super Cup between the2013–14 UEFA Champions League winnersReal Madrid and the2013–14 UEFA Europa League winnersSevilla. Real Madrid won 2–0.[46]
On 1 June 2017, it hosted thefinal of the2016–17 UEFA Women's Champions League.
In March 2021, it was announced thatNewport County would play two games at the Cardiff City Stadium due to the poor pitch conditions atRodney Parade.[47]
On 20 July 2023, the stadium hosted a2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League first qualifying match betweenHaverfordwest County andKF Shkëndija. Following a 1–1 draw on aggregate, Haverfordwest advanced on penalties.[48]
Between the 2009–10 season and the 2011–12 season, it was the home of theCardiff Blues. The Blues left after the 2011–12 season, after a mutual agreement to return to theArms Park was agreed.[49] The Cardiff City stadium also hosted the2010–11 Amlin Challenge Cup final between English clubHarlequins and French clubStade Français on 20 May 2011 with Harlequins pipping Stade Français 19–18.
Stereophonics headlined the first gig at the stadium on 5 June 2010, having already played a record-breaking 13 previous sell-out shows at theCardiff International Arena, as well as at theMillennium Stadium andCardiff Castle.[50] The concert, known asSummer in the City, was supported byKids In Glass Houses andDoves. Elton John performed at the stadium in June 2019.
| Date | Artist | Tour/concert | Support acts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 June 2010 | Stereophonics | Summer in the City | Doves Kids in Glass Houses |
| 12 June 2013 | Bon Jovi | Because We Can: The Tour | Kids in Glass Houses |
| 4 June 2016 | Stereophonics | Keep the Summer Alive | The Vaccines Band of Skulls |
| 11 June 2016 | Rod Stewart | Hits 2016 | The Mariarchis The Sisterhood[51] |
| 15 June 2019 | Elton John | Farewell Yellow Brick Road | |
| 28 July 2023 | Duran Duran | Future Past Tour |
The stadium and surrounding area is served byNinian Park railway station (on theCardiff City Line) on one side of Sloper Road, by andGrangetown railway station (on theVale of Glamorgan Line) on the other side.[52] Trains operate frequently toCentral andQueen Street stations in thecity centre.[53]
Cardiff Bus service 95 between Central Station andBarry Island stops outside the stadium.[54]
The stadium is next to Leckwith Interchange on theA4232 dual carriageway, linking it northbound to theA48 andM4 (J33 Cardiff West) and southbound toCardiff Bay and the city centre.
There is limited parking at the stadium itself. Some spaces are available on a first-come, first-served basis, but most are pre-allocated to season ticket holders.
On 17 December 2009, Cardiff City confirmed a statue of 1927FA Cup-winning captainFred Keenor would be built.[55] In May 2012, the £85,000 needed to build the statue was raised by the Cardiff City Supporters Trust and was revealed on 10 November 2012.[56][57]
| Season | Cardiff City | Cardiff Blues[a] | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Att. | Division | Pos. | Att. | Pos. | |
| 2009–10 | 20,717[60] | Championship | 4th | 10,853[citation needed] | 5th |
| 2010–11 | 23,193[61] | Championship | 4th | 6,542[citation needed] | 6th |
| 2011–12 | 22,100[62] | Championship | 6th | 6,927[citation needed] | 7th |
| 2012–13 | 22,998[63] | Championship | 1st | ||
| 2013–14 | 27,429[64] | Premier League | 20th | ||
| 2014–15 | 21,123[65] | Championship | 11th | ||
| 2015–16 | 16,255[65] | Championship | 8th | ||
| 2016–17 | 16,564[66] | Championship | 12th | ||
| 2017–18 | 20,164[67] | Championship | 2nd | ||
| 2018–19 | 31,413[68] | Premier League | 18th | ||
The "Cardiff City Total" games column contains all competitive games, including all league games, including play-offs; as well as cup competitions such as The F.A. Cup and The Football League Cup. There is a separate row recording all competitive home league games which have taken place at the Cardiff City Stadium.
| Team | P | W | D | L | For[a] | Against[b] | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cardiff City (League) | 360 | 159 | 90 | 111 | 493 | 413 | 44.17% |
| Cardiff City (Total) | 398 | 174 | 96 | 128 | 551 | 479 | 43.72% |
| Newport County | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 50% |
| Cardiff Blues | 49 | 29 | 1 | 19 | 1060 | 913 | 59.18% |
| Wales (football) | 60 | 31 | 18 | 11 | 85 | 46 | 51.67% |
51°28′22″N3°12′11″W / 51.47278°N 3.20306°W /51.47278; -3.20306
| Preceded by | UEFA Super Cup Match venue 2014 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | UEFA Women's Champions League Final venue 2017 | Succeeded by |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Players | |
| Grounds | |
| Rivalries | |
| Songs & Celebrations | |
| Miscellaneous | |
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