Wembley Lions (speedway)

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Wembley Lions
Wembley speedway.jpg
Wembley Lions Speedway Badge
Club information
Track address Empire Stadium
Wembley
London
Country England
Founded1929
Closed1971
Club facts
ColoursRed and White
Track size378 yards (345m)
Major team honours
National League Champions1932, 1946, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953
National Trophy Winners1931, 1932, 1939, 1948, 1954
British Speedway Cup Winners1947
Southern League Champions1930, 1931
London Cup 1930, 1932, 1933, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1951

The Wembley Lions were a motorcycle speedway team which operated from 1929 until their closure in 1971. Their track was located at Wembley Stadium, Wembley Park, London. [1]

Contents

The original stadium which hosted speedway has been redeveloped.

Brief history

Pre-war

After opening in 1929, the Lions joined the Southern League (1929-1931), winning it in 1930 and 1931. The 1932 season saw them join the National League which they won at the first attempt. The Lions continued to compete in the National League until the outbreak of World War II . [2]

Tommy Price's Wembley Lions race jacket Tommy Price's Wembley Lions Race Jacket.jpg
Tommy Price's Wembley Lions race jacket

1946–1957

After the war Wembley continued in the National League, winning the title in the opening season in 1946. The following season they retained their title. The Lions operated until the end of the 1956 season, winning the title a further five times (successive titles between 1949 and 1953) but in 1957 they withdrew from the league before the season started due to the death of Sir Arthur Elvin, the chairman of Wembley Stadium. Many of the Wembley "home" meetings in 1948 were staged at Wimbledon as the Empire Stadium was used for the 1948 Summer Olympics. [3] [4]

During this era, speedway went through the biggest crowd "boom" in its history. Wembley, who ran league meetings every Thursday, had by far the biggest crowds. The average weekly attendances were around the 60,000 mark from 1946–1951, with one meeting of note, a London Cup match between Wembley and West Ham, drawing an estimated crowd of 85,000 with 20,000 locked outside, listening to a BBC radio commentary of the match via loudspeakers set up in the car park. Towards the mid-1950s speedway crowds fell away dramatically and Wembley's last season in 1956 saw average attendances of around the 15,000 mark.

1970–1971

In 1970, Wembley speedway returned, entering the British League. Promoters Trevor Redmond and Bernard Cottrell bought their licence and the contracts of some of the riders from the Edinburgh Monarchs promoter Ian Hoskins who was operating at Coatbridge. The Lions only managed to stay in operation for two seasons due to the stadium not being able to support speedway at all times due to commitments to other events being held there. [5]

Big events

Wembley staged the Speedway World Championship Final continuously from 1936 to 1938 and then when it was re-introduced after World War II from 1949 to 1960. It went on to stage the championship a further nine times before the last contest at Wembley in 1981. Lions riders won in 1936 (Lionel Van Praag), 1949 (Tommy Price), and 1950 and 1953 (Freddie Williams). Wembley also hosted the British Riders' Championships Finals 1946 to 1948.

Notable Wembley riders

Season summary

Extended content
Year and leaguePositionNotes
1929 Speedway Southern League 5th
1930 Speedway Southern League 1stchampions
1931 Speedway Southern League 1stchampions and National Trophy winner
1932 Speedway National League 1stchampions and National Trophy winner
1933 Speedway National League 6th
1934 Speedway National League 2nd
1935 Speedway National League 4th
1936 Speedway National League 2nd
1937 Speedway National League 2nd
1938 Speedway National League 3rd
1939 Speedway National League 3rd+ National Trophy winner+
1946 Speedway National League 1stchampions
1947 Speedway National League 1stchampions & British Speedway Cup winner
1948 Speedway National League 4th National Trophy winner
1949 Speedway National League 1stchampions
1950 Speedway National League 1stchampions
1951 Speedway National League 1stchampions
1952 Speedway National League 1stchampions
1953 Speedway National League 1stchampions
1954 Speedway National League 2nd National Trophy winner
1955 Speedway National League 3rd
1956 Speedway National League 2nd
1970 British League season 14th
1971 British League season 9th

+3rd when season suspended and jointly declared National Trophy winner with Belle Vue

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References

  1. ↑ Bamford, R & Jarvis J.(2001). Homes of British Speedway. ISBN   0-7524-2210-3
  2. ↑ Jacobs, N. & Lipscomb, P.(2005). Wembley Speedway The Pre-War Years. ISBN   0-7524-3750-X
  3. ↑ "BRITISH LEAGUE TABLES - PRE-WAR ERA (1929-1939)". Official British Speedway website. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  4. ↑ "BRITISH LEAGUE TABLES - POST-WAR ERA (1946-1964)". Official British Speedway website. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  5. ↑ Jacobs, Norman (2001). Speedway in London. ISBN   0-7524-2221-9
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