The Mem | |
DriBuild Stand at the Memorial Stadium | |
![]() | |
Former names | Memorial Ground |
---|---|
Location | Filton Avenue, Horfield, Bristol, BS7 0AQ |
Coordinates | 51°29′10″N2°34′59″W / 51.4862°N 2.5831°W |
Owner | Bristol Rovers FC |
Capacity | 11,000 [1] |
Record attendance | 12,011 (Bristol Rovers vs West Bromwich Albion, 9 March 2008) |
Field size | 101 × 68 metres |
Surface | Grass |
Opened | 24 September 1921 |
Tenants | |
Bristol Rovers (1996–present) Bristol Rovers Women (2024–present) Bristol Rugby (1921–2014) |
The Memorial Stadium, also commonly known by its previous name of the Memorial Ground, is a sports ground in Bristol, England, and is the home of Bristol Rovers F.C. It opened in 1921, dedicated to the memory of local rugby union players killed during the First World War, [2] and was the home of Bristol Rugby Club until they moved to Ashton Gate in 2014.
The site was created on an area of land called Buffalo Bill's Field, after Colonel William "Buffalo Bill" Cody's Wild West Show was held there between 28 September and 3 October 1891. [3] Two years later, in September 1893, Clifton RFC played on the site for the first time.
During the First World War the site was converted into allotments, but after the war Buffalo Bill's Field was bought by Sir Francis Nicholas Cowlin (then the Sheriff of Bristol) and given to Bristol Rugby Club. It was opened as the Memorial Ground on 24 September that year by G. B. Britton, the Lord Mayor of Bristol.
Situated on Filton Avenue in Horfield, Bristol, it has developed significantly over the years. A massive crowd turned out to watch the first Bristol game to be held there against Cardiff, but did so from wooden terraces and stands. [4] With the advent of leagues in the late 1980s, Bristol looked to develop the ground, replacing the old Shed on the north side with the Centenary Stand to mark the club's 100th anniversary in 1988. The West Stand, an original feature of the ground, was demolished in 1995 having been condemned, and replaced.
In 1996, Bristol Rovers moved in as tenants of Bristol Rugby Club, and then entered into joint ownership through the Memorial Stadium Company. After just two years, in 1998, the rugby club was relegated from the Premiership (causing them severe financial difficulties) and under the terms of the agreement Bristol Rovers were able to buy Bristol Rugby's share of the stadium for a 'nominal fee', a clause designed to protect either party should one or the other fall into financial difficulties. The rugby club became tenants in their original home.
By 2005, the Memorial Stadium was hosting Bristol Rugby Club back in the Guinness Premiership, with Bristol Rovers continuing to compete in the lower levels of the Football League. A roof was added to the Clubhouse Terrace (paid for by Bristol Rovers supporters' efforts) and temporary stands at the south and south-west of the ground have brought capacity up to 11,916. Bristol Rugby were again relegated out of the Premiership in 2009.
In February 2013, after months of speculation, [5] Bristol Rugby announced that they would move and share a ground with Bristol City at the redeveloped Ashton Gate Stadium. [6] The rugby club played their final game at the Mem on 4 June 2014, a Championship play-off final second leg against London Welsh. [7] There was no fairytale ending for Bristol though as London Welsh won the game 21–20 to condemn the side to a sixth straight season outside the Premiership. [8]
The ground has remained a focal point for the wider Bristol community, and a minute's silence is held annually at the closest game to Remembrance Sunday, while on 11 November a service of remembrance is held at the Memorial Gates with players and officials from both Bristol Rovers and Bristol Rugby attending the service each year. [9] On Christmas Eve 2015, the memorial gates were vandalized by supporters of Bristol City. [10]
The stadium is also used for the rugby varsity between the city's two universities, University of the West of England and University of Bristol. In 2013, the stadium hosted the Rugby League World Cup Group D match between the Cook Islands and the United States attracting a crowd of 7,247. [11] Gloucester Rugby played two pre-season friendlies at the stadium whilst their home ground, Kingsholm Stadium, was being used for the 2015 Rugby World Cup. [12]
In 2017 there was a crowd recording for the Aardman Animations film Early Man at the Memorial Stadium. [13] The stadium features in the music videos for Kano's This Is England [14] and Idles' Great. [15]
The Memorial Stadium Company proposed a wide-ranging £35 million refurbishment of the Memorial Stadium, bringing it up to an 18,500 all-seater capacity. [16] On 17 January 2007, Bristol City Council granted permission for the stadium redevelopment. [17]
The new stadium would have included [18] [19] a 97-room hotel, 99 student flats, a restaurant, a convenience store, offices and a public gym.
On 17 August 2007, it was announced that the stadium's redevelopment had been delayed and would commence in May 2008 and finish in December 2009. During this time period of reconstruction, Bristol Rovers would have ground-shared with Cheltenham Town at Whaddon Road [20] while Bristol Rugby would have played across the Severn Bridge, sharing the Rodney Parade ground in Newport. [21] The Section 106 legal agreement, which was the main cause for the delay in the redevelopment, was finally signed on 4 January 2008, [22] but more delays were encountered when on 30 May 2008 Rovers admitted that their preferred student accommodation providers had pulled out of the project, leaving the club to find an alternative company. [23] This caused the redevelopment to be put back another year, to 2009. [24] More delays, mostly attributed to the ongoing financial crisis, meant that by mid-2011 the stadium redevelopment had yet to begin.
In June 2011, Bristol Rovers announced its intentions to relocate the club to the newly proposed UWE Stadium instead of redeveloping the Memorial Stadium. In order to fund the new stadium, the Memorial Stadium was to be sold to supermarket chain Sainsbury's with Rovers paying a peppercorn rent with work to redevelop the site not beginning until Rovers completed their move to the new stadium. [25] Planning permission was granted for the UWE Stadium site in July 2012 [26] and the Sainsbury's plans for the Memorial Stadium in January 2013. [27] Work was expected to begin on the UWE Stadium shortly after but multiple delays caused by legal challenges held the project up. [28] [29] In 2014, Sainsbury's pulled out of the project and were subsequently taken to court by Rovers. [30] Sainsbury's won the court case and appeal that followed leaving the entire project again in doubt. [31] [32]
In August 2017, following the takeover of the club by the Al-Qadi family, and extensive negotiations with the UWE, the club announced that it was no longer looking to build a new stadium in collaboration with the UWE but would once again explore redeveloping the Memorial Stadium instead. [33]
Before the 2019/20 League One campaign, Rovers redeveloped the bar under the Poplar Insulation stand and subsequently reopened it as a "club superstore". The new club bar was opened in the place of the former club shop.
On 28 April 2023, Bristol Rovers announced plans to remove the south stand – a temporary tent that had been there since the stadiums redevelopment in 1995/1996. In June 2023 the stand had been completely removed and the land was ready to be rebuilt. The stand will increase the stadiums capacity by 3,414 seats and will boost the stadiums capacity to 12,500. [34] [35] In July, local media reported that work on the new stand had commenced without planning permission. [36] A club statement released on 2 August 2023 confirmed that "due to issues outside of the club's control", the improved south stand would not be ready for the start of the new season. [37] On 15 November 2023, it was confirmed that planning permission had been granted with conditions. [38]
In October 2023, Rovers' new owner Hussain AlSaeed confirmed that the club's proposed move to a potential new stadium at the Fruit Market site had fallen through and they would instead focus on redeveloping the Memorial Stadium. The plans included development on both the East and North stands upon completion of the South Stand, increasing the ground's capacity to between 16-17000. [39]
Season | Bristol Rovers | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Attendance | League | |||
2023–24 | 8,190 | League One | ||
2022–23 | 8,907 | League One | ||
2021–22 | 7,512 | League Two | ||
2020–21 | 0 [lower-alpha 1] | League One | ||
2019–20 | 7,348 | |||
2018-19 | 8,320 | |||
2017–18 | 8,933 | |||
2016–17 | 9,302 | |||
2015–16 | 8,096 | League Two | Bristol Rugby | |
2014–15 | 6,793 | Conference Premier | Attendance | League |
2013–14 | 6,420 | League Two | 5,808 | Championship |
2012–13 | 6,308 | 4,859 | ||
2011–12 | 6,035 | 5,351 | ||
2010–11 | 6,253 | League One | 4,273 | |
2009–10 | 7,042 | 5,261 | ||
2008–09 | 7,170 | 7,435 | Premiership | |
2007–08 | 6,849 | 9,175 |
Easter Road is a football stadium located in the Leith area of Edinburgh, Scotland, which is the home ground of Scottish Premiership club Hibernian (Hibs). The stadium currently has an all-seated capacity of 20,421, which makes it the fifth-largest football stadium in Scotland. Easter Road is also known by Hibs fans as "The Holy Ground" or "The Leith San Siro". The venue has also been used to stage international matches, Scottish League Cup semi-finals and was briefly the home ground of the Edinburgh professional rugby union team.
Bristol Rovers Football Club are a professional football club in Bristol, England. They compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club's official nickname is "The Pirates", reflecting the maritime history of Bristol. The local nickname of the club is "The Gas", derived from the gasworks next to their former home, Eastville Stadium. Since 1996, the club has played home matches at the Memorial Stadium in Horfield.
St James' Park is a football stadium in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is the home of Newcastle United. With a seating capacity of 52,350 seats, it is the 8th largest football stadium in England.
Selhurst Park is a football stadium in Selhurst, in the London Borough of Croydon, England, which is the home ground of Premier League side Crystal Palace. The stadium was designed by Archibald Leitch and opened in 1924. It has hosted international football, as well as games for the 1948 Summer Olympics; it was shared by Charlton Athletic from 1985 to 1991 and Wimbledon from 1991 to 2003.
Gloucester Rugby are a professional rugby union club based in the West Country city of Gloucester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
Bristol Bears are a professional rugby union club based in Bristol, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
Headingley Stadium is a stadium complex in Headingley, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Linked by a two-sided stand housing common facilities, it comprises the two following separate grounds: Headingley Cricket Ground - home of Yorkshire County Cricket Club & Headingley Rugby Stadium - home of Leeds Rhinos Rugby League Club.
Ashton Gate is a multi-use stadium in Ashton Gate, Bristol, England, and is the home of Bristol City football club and the Bristol Bears rugby union team. Located in the south-west of the city, just south of the River Avon, it currently has an all-seated capacity of 27,000.
The Racecourse Ground, known for sponsorship reasons as the STōK Cae Ras, is a football stadium in Wrexham, Wales. It is the home of Wrexham A.F.C.
Craven Park is a rugby league stadium located in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is the home of Hull Kingston Rovers, one of two professional rugby league teams based in the city.
The 2007–08 season covers the period from 1 July 2007 to 30 June 2008. It marks the 125th year of football played by Bristol Rovers F.C. and their 81st season in The Football League. The team plays in Football League One having won the Football League Two playoff game at Wembley Stadium on 26 May 2007, beating Shrewsbury 3–1 in front of a crowd of 61,589.
A large number of English football clubs have ongoing schemes to redevelop existing grounds, or to move to newly constructed stadiums. A trend towards all-seater stadiums was initially prescribed by the Taylor Report, and was originally a condition only of Premier League admission. It has now become a requirement that within three years of a club's first promotion to the Championship all paying spectators are seated, even if the club is subsequently relegated. This page provides an (incomplete) list and description of those clubs who have planned new stadiums or refurbishments, or who have already moved/refurbished since around the time of the Taylor Report.
Sandy Park is a rugby union stadium and conference and banqueting centre in Exeter, England. It is the home ground of Exeter Chiefs, who from the 2010–11 season have been playing in Premiership Rugby, the top flight of the English rugby union league system. The club relocated there from their former stadium at the County Ground in 2006. The stadium can hold 15,600 spectators and is located adjacent to M5 junction 30, which is around 5 miles from Exeter City Centre.
Bristol has a number of notable professional sports teams and a large number of active amateur sports clubs. There are also large numbers of participants in individual sports. The city has two Football League clubs: Bristol City F.C., who play in the second tier, and Bristol Rovers F.C., who play in the third tier. Gloucestershire County Cricket Club has its headquarters in the city. Bristol Bears are currently in Premiership Rugby.
Ellis Wade Harrison is a Welsh professional footballer who plays as a centre-forward for EFL League Two club Milton Keynes Dons. He represented Wales at under-21 level, scoring three goals in fourteen games.
During 2011 and 2012, Bristol Rovers Football Club participated in League Two, the fourth level of English football. It was 129th season of football played by Bristol Rovers, and their 85th in the Football League. The previous saw Bristol Rovers end a four-year tenure in League One. Despite initial optimism of an instant return, the campaign proved disappointing as Rovers struggled for much of the season under new manager Paul Buckle before being replaced by Mark McGhee who brought about an upturn in fortunes to finish 13th.
UWE Stadium was a proposed 21,700 all-seater stadium to be built in Cheswick, South Gloucestershire, as a new home for Bristol Rovers. The stadium was to replace their current home, the Memorial Stadium. Sainsbury's agreed to buy the Memorial Stadium in 2011 and lease it to the club while the new stadium was built to the north of the city.
The 2012–13 season was the 130th season in Bristol Rovers' history and their 86th in the Football League. Rovers once again competed in League Two, the lowest level of the Football League, after finishing 13th in the 2011–12 season.
The 2013–14 season was the 131st season in Bristol Rovers' history and their 87th in the Football League. For the third season in a row, Rovers competed in the basement division of the Football League, League Two, having finished 14th in the 2012–13 season.
Wael Abdulkader Al-Qadi is a Jordanian football executive, best known as the current club president of English club Bristol Rovers and a member of the Al-Qadi family.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)