Emirates Old Trafford, officially named Lancashire County Cricket Club, is a multi-purpose stadium located in Manchester, England. It is used mostly for cricket matches, hosting the home games of Lancashire County Cricket Club, its owner.
Opened on 9 July 1857, it replaced the original Old Trafford Cricket Ground. The seating capacity of the stadium is currently set at 26,000 for cricket and 50,000 for concerts. The stadium was designed by renowned architects Mather and Co and had an extensive redevelopment cost of £32 million.
A category B stadium and one of the biggest cricket stadiums by capacity in England, Emirates Old Trafford hosted several matches of the ICC Cricket World Cup in 1975, 1979, 1983, 1999, and 2019, including its semi-final, as well as the 2013 and 2020 finals of the Ashes Series. It was elected as the 'International Venue of the Year' at the Stadium Business Awards in 2017. By its 150th anniversary, Emirates Old Trafford had welcomed more than 10 million spectators. The stadium is one of the potential venues for the 2030 ICC Cricket World Cup, which England may host.
While the previous Manchester United stadium was also officially named 'Old Trafford', both the old and the new stadia are invariably referred to by their unofficial name, Emirates Old Trafford. Old Trafford is the name of the neighborhood the stadium was built on, on the border between the parishes of Stretford and Salford, which itself derives its name from the nearby Old Trafford Cricket Ground. This unofficial name caught on soon after the original stadium's construction; the people of Manchester used to simply call it Old Trafford, the stadium's common name became 'Emirates Old Trafford', which is usually anglicized to 'Emirates Old Trafford Stadium'. This translation, however, could be argued to be accurate, since Old Trafford refers not to the sponsorship name but to the original address of the stadium: Talbot Road.
Old Trafford is a football stadium in Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,879, it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest overall after Wembley Stadium) in the United Kingdom, and the eleventh-largest in Europe. It is about 0.5 miles (800 m) from Old Trafford Cricket Ground and the adjacent tram stop.
Named after the district of Manchester in which it is located, Old Trafford has been United's home ground since 1910, although from 1941 to 1949, as a result of Second World War bomb damage, the club shared Maine Road with local rivals Manchester City. The ground underwent several expansions in the 1990s and 2000s, most notably the addition of extra tiers to the North, West and East stands which served to return the ground almost to its original capacity of 80,000. Future expansion is likely to involve the addition of a second tier to the South Stand, which would raise the capacity to around 88,000. The stadium's record attendance was recorded in 1939, when 76,962 spectators watched the FA Cup semi-final between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Grimsby Town.
The stadium has hosted FA Cup semi-finals, England fixtures, matches at the 1966 World Cup and Euro 96 and the 2003 Champions League Final, as well as rugby league's annual Super League Grand Final and the final of two Rugby League World Cups. It also hosted football matches at the 2012 Summer Olympics, including women's international football for the first time in its history.
A suitable site, with excellent accessibility and sufficient space for future expansion, was identified in the Old Trafford area of Manchester. Located in close proximity to the Manchester city centre, the stadium initially gained recognition as 'Emirates Old Trafford'.
From the onset, the aim of the club was to gain ownership of both the stadium and the surrounding terrains. Initially, a lease was taken on the municipal terrains, with a final buy-out happening only in 2013. The plans for the sports complex had been outlined as early as the late 1940s by architects, who were fans of the club.
Inspired by the club's president, David Gill, the associates dealt with an increased fee for supporting the building costs for the new stadium, offered substantial donations, and some even volunteered to work on the construction site during holidays or weekends. There was even a 'brick campaign', where large quantities of bricks were donated to the club.
Construction officially started on 14 June 1953. Less than two years later, at a cost of 12,037,683 pounds, on 1 December 1954 (a national holiday), a crowd of 40,000 filled the stadium for the inaugural match against rivals Manchester City.
'Emirates Old Trafford (1857)' (in English). Lancashire Cricket Club: Detailed information about the history and various aspects of the Emirates Old Trafford. http://www.lccc.co.uk
'Emirates Old Trafford (The Grand Pavilion) – until 2003'. StadiumDB.com: Contains data about the structure and modifications made to the Emirates Old Trafford until 2003. http://www.stadiumdb.com
Old Trafford doesn't fade away, Preface, Prime Books, 2003: A book providing insights into the enduring popularity of Old Trafford. http://primebooks.com
Lancashire Cricket Club 100 glorious years - The History 1, Edition and Contents, S.A., 2003: A comprehensive history of the Lancashire Cricket Club and its home ground. http://editionandcontents.com
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