 | |
  Ewood Park Location in Blackburn | |
| Full name | Ewood Park |
|---|---|
| Address | Nuttall Street |
| Location | Blackburn Lancashire, England BB2 4JF |
| Coordinates | 53°43′43″N2°29′21″W / 53.72861°N 2.48917°W /53.72861; -2.48917 |
| Capacity | 31,367[1] |
| Field size | 115 yd × 76 yd (105 m × 69 m) |
| Construction | |
| Built | 1882 |
| Opened | April 1882 |
| Renovated | 1913, 1928, 1955, 1988, 1995 |
| Tenants | |
| Blackburn Rovers (1881, 1890–present) Blackburn Rovers Women (2024–present) | |
Ewood Park (/ˈiːwʊd/) is afootball stadium inBlackburn, Lancashire, England, and the home ofBlackburn Rovers F.C., founding members of theFootball League andPremier League, who have played there since 1890. It is an all seater multi-sports facility with a capacity of 31,367,[1] and four sections: the Bryan Douglas Darwen End, TheRonnie Clayton Blackburn End, the Riverside Stand, and Jack Walker Stand, named after Blackburn industrialist and club supporter,Jack Walker. The football pitch within the stadium measures 115 by 76 yards (105 m × 69 m)
Football had been played on the site since at least 1881; Rovers played four matches there when it was known asEwood Bridge and was most likely little more than a field. Their first match was againstSheffield Wednesday on 9 April 1881.[2]
Ewood Park was officially opened in April 1882 and during the 1880s staged football, athletics and some form of greyhound racing (not oval). Rovers moved back in during 1890, signing a ten-year lease at an initial annual rent of £60.[3] Their first match at the ground was againstAccrington in September. In 1893, Blackburn Rovers bought the freehold of the ground for £2500,[3] but came close to disaster soon after when part of a stand collapsed under the weight of a 20,000 strong crowd for the visit ofEverton.[citation needed]
In 1903, a roof was built on the Darwen End of the ground, at a cost of £1,680. The stand now held 12,000 spectators.[4]
In 1904, the Nuttall Street Stand was built,[4] based on designs by the architect,Archibald Leitch at a cost of £24,000. The stand was first used by supporters on New Year's Day 1907 for a match againstPreston North End. In 1905, the textile baronLaurence Cotton became chairman and set about overhauling both team and ground. In 1906, construction started on a new main stand seating 4,112 on its upper tier with a paddock for 9,320 in front with changing rooms and offices underneath, cranked at one end to follow the angle of Nuttall Street.[5]
An attempt was made to destroy the ground in 1913. As part of thesuffragette bombing and arson campaign,suffragettes carried out a series of bombings and arson attacks nationwide to support their campaign for women's suffrage.[6] In November 1913, suffragettes attempted to burn down Ewood Park's grandstand but were foiled.[7] In the same year, suffragettessucceeded in burning downArsenal's then South London stadium, and also attempted to burn downPreston North End's ground.[7] More traditionally male sports were targeted in order to protest againstmale dominance.[8]
The Nuttall Street stand changed very little until a fire in 1984 in the Blackburn End corner of the Stand. The club took the opportunity to redevelop this section of the stand withexecutive boxes and glass-fronted lounge overlooking the ground. The development cost £250,000 and was named the John Lewis Complex, after the club's founder.[9]
The Blackburn End is so named as the town of Blackburn lies behind the stand and is for home supporters. The Blackburn End was terraced in 1928, but did not acquire its concretecantilever roof until 1960, which was financed after anFA Cup run to the1960 FA Cup Final.[10]
A double tiered Riverside Stand was built in 1913, bringing the capacity of Ewood Park up to 70,886 with 7,000 seats. In 1928 the Riverside Stand roof was re-roofed for a total outlay of £1,550.
Ewood Park saw its largest crowd – 62,522 for the visit ofBolton Wanderers in 1929.[11]Floodlights were installed in 1958 and were first used in a friendly againstWerder Bremen.
After sellingWalkersteel toBritish Steel Corporation for £330 million, Jack Walker decided to buy Blackburn Rovers and set about changing Ewood Park to one of the most advanced grounds in the country.[12] Having gained full control of Blackburn Rovers by the end of the1990–91 season and funded the construction of the new stand to replace the Riverside Stand three years before, Walker unveiled plans to rebuild the three other sides of Ewood Park and in June 1992 the local council plans for three new stands to be built, which would give the club anall-seater stadium with a capacity of more than 31,000. By February 1994, the new two-tiered Blackburn and Darwen End stands were opened with car parks situated behind both stands. This had involved the demolition of terraced houses in Nuttall Street and also the demolition of Fernhurst Mill.
The ground's transformation was complete when in August 1994, the Jack Walker Stand was opened on the site of the old Nuttall Street Stand.[13] The new Ewood Park was officially opened in November 1995 which Blackburn Rovers marked the occasion with a 7–0 win overNottingham Forest.
The biggest stand at Ewood is named after former club owner Jack Walker (1929–2000). It has 11,000 seats and is one of three stands that were built during Ewood Park's ground redevelopment in the first half of the 1990s. This stand contains the home and away dressing rooms and media/conferencing facilities. Furthermore, the stand is home to the Premier Suite and Jack's Kitchen which form part of the club's hospitality packages in partnership with multinational corporationSodexo. The neighbouring houses in Nuttall Street were demolished to make way for it.
The modern Blackburn End Stand has 8,000 seats and was constructed in the early 1990s. Theboardroom in the Nuttall Street Stand was dismantled piece by piece and, when rebuilding was finished, reassembled in the Blackburn End. The lower-tier houses some of the more vocal Rovers supporters.[citation needed] The rear of the stand is also home to a memorial garden and a statue of Jack Walker entitled "Rovers' Greatest Supporter". Outside the stand is the Blackburn Rovers club shop "Roverstore" which was revamped in 2008. The home supporters ticket office and "Blues" cafe bar is situated in the lower reaches of the stand. From here ground tours were led by former Rovers player,Ronnie Clayton (1934–2010) until his death in October 2010; it was renamed in his honour less than a year later. The stand is home to the "Strikers Lounge" where members of the club's junior membership scheme "Team Rovers" congregate before and after matches. TheBob Crompton (1879–1941) suite and Executive Boxes are also located in the stand.
On 13 August 2011, as a sign of respect to the late and long-serving RoverRonnie Clayton, it was announced at half-time during the first game of the 2011–12Premier League season thatThe Blackburn End was to be renamedThe Ronnie Clayton End.
It was not until 1988 that the old Riverside Stand was replaced by a new stand. The old stand had failed a safety check in 1985 that came in the aftermath of theBradford City stadium fire;[14] a new, single-tier stand housing over 1,000 (700 seated approx.). The material for the new roof and terracing was provided by local steel firm, Walkersteel, owned by the man who was soon to buy the club, Jack Walker. Further development of the Riverside Stand took place in 1990 with further seats being added. The stand is currently sponsored by Regulatory Finance Solutions (RFS).
The Riverside Stand is now the oldest part of the modern Ewood Park. It is the only single tiered stand in the ground, the seating spells out the word "ROVERS" – the club's nickname. The stand holds approximately 6,000 spectators. At the corner of the stand is a giant TV screen showing features, teamsheets and other live games on a match day. Since around the year 2000, there have been plans to redevelop the stand, which would raise Ewood Park's capacity by around 9,000 to 40,000. However, these plans have yet to materialise, and were not even realised during Blackburn's long spell in the Premier League.[1] Any development in the foreseeable future depends on an increase of attendance.
The Darwen End is so named after the town ofDarwen which is situated just beyond Blackburn's southern borders .
The modern Darwen End was built in 1993 and holds 8,000 seats. The stand houses both home and away supporters in a two tier stand mirroring the Blackburn End in both appearance and capacity. The stand houses the club's education department which attracts youngsters from the surrounding areas for football-based activities in the classroom. The stand is home to the "Legend's Lounge" and International hospitality suites. Behind the stand is the Blackburn Rovers Indoor Centre which provides facilities for community coaching, football leagues and soccer schools. Fernhurst Mill, which stood to the rear of the former Darwen End terrace, was demolished to make way for the new stand as well as a new car park to serve the stadium.
On 1 November 2012 the Darwen End was renamed as a tribute to club legendBryan Douglas. He said of the honour: "The first person to congratulate me wasRonnie's wife Val. He is atone end of the ground and I’m at the other end and long may that continue. We were great friends. They have put me at the right end as well. I was born just 400 yards away from the Darwen End. It is a really proud moment".[15]
Though primarily the home ground for Blackburn Rovers, Ewood Park has seen other usage, including hosting the1941 Football League War Cup Final Replay. The ground was given the honour of hosting an international –England vScotland in 1891 andEngland vWales in 1924. SixFA Cup semi finals were played at the venue between 1893 and 1947. On 9 November 2002 Ewood Park hostedGreat Britain's rugby league test match againstNew Zealand, which was part of their tour of Great Britain and France. The tourists won 30 – 16 with 16,654 in attendance. The ground has also hosted numerousEngland U21 internationals including England v Wales in 2004. The stadium hosted three matches during theWomen's Euro 2005 competition – twoEngland matches in group play, and thefinal. In 2014, the official supporters trust of the club, Rovers Trust, successfully applied to register the stadium as anAsset of Community Value, In June 2017 the ground hosted a pop concert byElton John.[16]
In May 2022, the stadium was opened for Muslims to perform the Eid al-Fitr prayer.[17]
Record Attendance:
Record League Attendance:
| Preceded by | UEFA Women's Euro Final Venue 2005 | Succeeded by |
