St James’ Park Stadium Capacity, Tickets, Seating Plan, Records, Location, Parking
St James’ Park is the home stadium of English football club Newcastle United F.C. The stadium is located in Newcastle upon Tyne, England and has a seating capacity of 52,305. The stadium has undergone several renovations over the years and is considered one of the most iconic football stadiums in England.
St James’ Park has been the home of Newcastle United FC since 1892 and has been used for football since 1880. Throughout its history, the desire for expansion has led to conflicts with local residents and the local council. This has led to proposals to move at least twice in the late 1960s, and a controversial 1995 move proposal to nearby Leazes Park. The reluctance to move has led to the distinctive asymmetrical appearance of today’s stadium asymmetrical stands.
As well as club football, St James’ Park has also been used for international football, at the 2012 Olympics, for rugby league’s Magic Weekend, the Rugby World Cup, Premiership matches and England Test, charity football events, rock concerts and as an ensemble. for film and reality television.
| Built In: | 1892 |
| Capacity: | 52,305 |
| Home Teams: | Newcastle United F.C. |
| Ground Size: | (114.8 yd × 74.4 yd) |
St James’ Park Stadium History
Early history
The site of St James’ Park was originally a sloping patch of grazing land, bordered by Georgian Leazes Terrace, and close to the historic Town Moor, owned by the town’s freemen, both factors later affecting the development of the land, with the premises being the town hall the owner of the plot. Leazes Terrace was built around 1830 by notable Newcastle residents, the architect Thomas Oliver and the builder Richard Grainger. Once the residence of Newcastle high society, it is now a Grade 1 listed building and, recently renovated, is currently used by Newcastle University as self-catering postgraduate student accommodation. The site was also close to the town’s gallows, last used in 1844, giving Gallowgate End its name.
The first football team to play at St James’ Park was Newcastle Rangers in 1880. They moved to a ground at Byker in 1882, then briefly returned to St James’ Park in 1884 before retiring that year. Newcastle West End took over the ground in 1886. West End dissolved in 1892, effectively amalgamating with rivals Newcastle East End, who took over the lease of St James’ Park and became Newcastle United later that year.
On September 3, 1892, Newcastle East End played its first game on the football ground. Opposition from local residents to football being played in St James dates back to early Football League games following the construction of the first small stand at Gallowgate End. A redeveloped Gallowgate and more stands followed in 1899, bringing the first official capacity to 30,000 (standing).
While the stadium is now synonymous with black and whites, Newcastle United played in red and white at St James’ Park until 1904. In 1905, capacity was doubled to 60,000, with a main stand at Barrack Road (now the Milburn Stand). , and other major stands, produced a state-of-the-art facility, including a swimming pool.
Rugby league’s second Test match and Great Britain’s first Test victory was played at the ground in 1908 against the touring Australian Kangaroos team on 23 January 1909.
1920–1990
Between 1920 and 1930, the noted football architect Archibald Leitch drew up the plans for a two-tiered stand. However, after planning disputes, all that was achieved was a small roof over the Leazes Terrace (Sir John Hall Stand) side. The floodlights were built in the 1950s and the first game played in them was held on February 25, 1953, against Celtic.
Planning difficulties continued into the 1960s, culminating in a lack of development of the ground which was cited as the reason Newcastle United was unable to secure the right to host a group stage of the upcoming 1966 World Cup. after political disputes.
In the late 1960s, further, attempts were made to develop the site, with the council proposing a multi-use sports development of St. James’ Park. This was rejected as not being financially viable. The club drew up plans to move to a stadium in Gosforth, or even share ground with Sunderland A.F.C. at a new stadium in Wearside.
These plans were withdrawn in 1971 after an agreement was finally reached to redevelop St James’ Park, after mediation by the then Minister for Sport, Denis Howell. In 1972, work began on the East Stand, 50 years after it was last allowed to develop. In 1978 the Leazes End was demolished, but decline and financial difficulties meant the new grandstand was not built.
Renaming of the stadium
Investigations following the Bradford City Stadium fire in 1985 identified a need to replace the aging West Stand, which was demolished in 1986. Its replacement, the Milburn Stand, was named after Jackie Milburn and opened in 1987. Further development was shelved again for lack of funding.
On 10 November 2011, Newcastle United announced that the stadium would be officially renamed Sports Direct Arena, as a temporary measure to “showcase the sponsorship opportunity to interested parties”, while looking for a sponsor for a possible future rebranding of the stadium. . According to the club, the St James’ Park title was dropped as not being “commercially attractive”.
Earlier, in 2009, the club had announced plans to sell the naming rights to the stadium. Following protests over the potential loss of the stadium’s name, which included an early motion being tabled in Parliament, the club clarified the following week that the move would not entail the loss of the St James’ Park name entirely, citing the example of ‘SportsDirect.com@StJamesPark’ as a potential stadium rights package. The following day, the club announced that the stadium would be known as sportsdirect.com @ St James’ Park Stadium temporarily until the end of the season, to showcase the idea behind the package, until the new sponsor was announced. The stadium’s official name change as the Sports Direct Arena, or SDA, caused a great uproar among the team’s supporters.
On 9 October 2012, payday loan company Wonga.com became Newcastle United’s main commercial sponsor and bought the naming rights to the stadium. They subsequently announced that the St James’ Park name would be restored as part of the deal.
Stadium Capacity
St James’ Park Stadium has a seating capacity of 52,305.
St James’ Park Stadium Seating Plan
The seating plan for St James’ Park, the home stadium of Newcastle United Football Club, features four main sections: the Milburn Stand, the Leazes End, the Sir John Hall Stand, and the East Stand.
- The Milburn Stand is located at one end of the stadium and is home to the club’s most vocal supporters, known as the “Gallowgate Flags.”
- The Leazes End, opposite the Milburn Stand, is where the away fans are situated.
- The Sir John Hall Stand runs along one side of the pitch and is home to corporate and VIP seating, as well as press facilities.
- The East Stand, the main stand of the stadium, houses the dressing rooms, VIP seating, and the club’s offices, as well as various corporate facilities, and it’s also where the dugouts are located.
Notable Events & Records
Events
2015 Rugby World Cup
The stadium hosted three matches in the 2015 Rugby World Cup. The first was a Group B match between South Africa and Scotland on 3 October 2015, with South Africa winning 34-16 with 50,900 in attendance. The second was a Pool C match between New Zealand and Tonga on 9 October 2015, with New Zealand winning 47-9 with 50,985 in attendance. The third and final was a Pool B match between Samoa and Scotland the following day with Scotland winning a close 36 – 33 with 51,982 in attendance.
Newcastle Falcons
On 21 November 2017, it was announced that Newcastle Falcons would take their Premiership Rugby match against Northampton Saints on 24 March 2018 to St James’ Park. The match dubbed The Big One was the first Premiership game at the venue.
The Falcons would return the following year to host the Sale Sharks on March 23, 2019.
Upcoming Events
Not Yet.
Parking
Parking fees apply from 09:00 to 18:00 Monday to Saturday. Parking is free on Sundays. The first hour of parking is free, however, showing a ticket is still required.
