10 Football Stadiums That No Longer Exist Part Four
Victoria Ground
Known as The Vic, the stadium was home to Stoke City for 119 years between 1878-1997
before the club moved on to the Britannia Stadium.
The ground originally opened as an athletics venue, and the first football match at the
stadium came on 28 March 1878 when Stoke took on Talke Rangers in a 1-0 defeat in front
of 2,500 people.
Following that, Stoke entered the Football League in 1888.
While modern concrete stadiums were being built, The Victoria Ground remained unchanged
for decades having three open banks, with one of those capable of holding 4,000 spectators,
and a small wooden stand that held 1,000 people.
Two extra stands were constructed by the end of World War 1, and by the 1930s, the stadium’s
Boothen End was terraced.
The Butler Street Stand was built in 1935 becoming the new main stand of the stadium,
holding 5,000 people.
A league match against Arsenal saw the record attendance set as 51,380 packed into The Vic
on 29 March 1937.
The club’s finances were almost depleted due to a storm blowing the roof off the Butler
Street Stand in January 1976, which led to the club’s relegation.
Stoke were back a few years later, with the stadium now improved and a new two-tier stand
at the Stoke End.
While other renovations were made throughout its time, in 1994 Stoke announced the construction
of an all-seater stand, but eventually decided to opt for the construction of a new stadium
instead.
In its last years, Victoria Ground held a seating capacity of 22,500.
The last match to be played at Victoria Ground saw a league match in which Stoke won 2-1
against West Brom on 4 May 1997.
The stadium was then demolished in June 1997, and the site remained empty until 2019 when
Victoria Park, a housing development featuring streets named after past Stoke players and
managers was completed.
Wankdorf Stadium
The Wankdorfstadion was the former home of Swiss Super League club BSC Young Boys from
1925 to 2001.
The stadium also held the 1954 World Cup final, as well as hosting several European Cup finals.
Officially opened on 18 October 1925, the stadium held 22,000 fans, but was quickly
expanded in the 1930s to 42,000 spectators.
With the perspective of the 1954 World Cup, the stadium was almost completely demolished
and a new one built that held 64,000 people.
The stadium held three World Cup group games, the quarter-final between Hungary and Brazil,
and the final between West Germany and Hungary.
The final was later referred to as the miracle of Bern due to the unexpected defeat of favourites
Hungary, as West Germany won 3-2, making the stadium iconic in football history.
The final days of the stadium came in 3 August 2001 when it was demolished, while the last
game to take place was a 1-1 league encounter between Young Boys and Lugano.
Stade de Suisse was built on the same site in 2005.
Ferenc Puskás Stadium
Formely known as Népstadion (meaning People’s Stadium), the Ferenc Puskás Stadium in Budapest
was constructed to replace the Üllői úti Stadion with a new national stadium for Hungary.
Work began in 1948, and officially opened on 20 August 1953 when Honvéd defeated Spartak
Moscow 3-2.
The stadium held a few different football clubs throughout its time, mainly the national
team of Hungary.
On 24 May 1954, England visited the stadium to take on Hungary in hopes of avenging a
previous 6-3 loss at Wembley Stadium.
Instead, the hosts ran out 7-1 winners against England, a record that still ranks as England’s
biggest footballing defeat.
A game between Vasas Budapest and Rapid Vienna set the stadium attendance of 104,000 people
on 28 July 1956, but capacity was dramatically reduced due to safety measures in the 1990s,
when stadiums began to become all-seater stadiums.
As part of Hungary’s bid to host Euro 2012, the stadium would be rebuilt.
The bid was unsuccessful, but plans for a new stadium continued, and in 2014, they were
made concrete as Budapest became one of the host cities for Euro 2020.
The stadium was closed in 2016, and demolished in 2017.
New stadium named Puskás Aréna was built on the same site in 2019.
Atotxa Stadium
Home to Real Socieded for 80 years between 1913-1993.
It had only one small stand when it was first constructed, but shortly a new double-decker
main stand with an open terrace on the other side was added.
The opening game came on 5 October 1913 in a match between Real Socieded and Athletic
Club Bilbao.
A new covered main stand was built in the 1940s, and then two new stands at both ends
of the stadium was built in the 1950s.
The ground had a reputation for its intimating atmosphere due to how close the stands were
to the pitch.
The lack of space however hindered the stadium for any future expansion plans, and around
the 1980s the capacity was about 27,000.
Success of the club meant that they were looking to build a new modern stadium.
On 22 June 1993, the stadium held a farewell game between Real Sociedad and the Basque
Country as Sociedad would move on to Anoeta Stadium.
The Atotxa was demolished soon after with residential buildings built in its place.
Filbert Street
The former home of Leicester City for 111 years between 1891-2002.
The stadium at first had a small main stand and earth banks until 1921, when a new much
larger stand was built.
In 1927, a new stand that was known as the Double Decker was built at the south end,
which saw attendances rise and the record attendance was broken on 18 Feburary 1928
in an FA Cup game against Tottenham Hotspur as 47,298 people packed into the stadium.
World War II saw the stadium suffer as parts of the Main Stand were hit with bombs in 1940,
and later further damaged by a serious fire.
Ironically, German POWs helped rebuild the stand, with capacity now at 42,000.
In 1971, moves to make the stadium all-seater were taken as the North and East sides were
both converted.
In the beginning of the 1990s, moves to a new stadium were considered, however ultimately
decided to build a new Main Stand which was completed in December 1993.
Capacity was now at 21,500 when the final section was converted to seating, making it
an all-seater stadium, a requirement that all Premier League and Division One clubs
had to do.
Success in the 1990s saw that expansion was needed for higher attendances, but the surrounding
housing areas around the stadium made it difficult to do so.
The decision was made to build an entire new stadium in 1998, and work began in early 2000s
on a 32,500 seater stadium.
Filbert Street was sold on, with the last game coming against Tottenham Hotspur in a
2-1 victory.
Demolition began in 2003, with part of the site now accommodation for students and the
area now known as Filbert Village, with the road running through the development named
after one of Leicester City’s most greatest players, Gary Lineker.
Baseball Ground
Built in 1890, originally for America’s favourite pastime.
The game of baseball however failed to gain popularity in England and ultimately the stadium
was moved on to Derby County in 1895, with capacity moved from 4,000 to 20,000.
The first game Derby County played in the stadium was a 2-0 victory against Sunderland
on 14 September 1895 in front of 10,000 people.
By 1920, Derby planned to move stadium, but decided to buy the Baseball Ground and become
owners, settling down here.
Promotion in 1926 to the First Division saw the club build a new main stand which was
designed by world renowned architect Archibald Leitch.
Attendances continued to grow, and a new double-decker stand was completed in 1933 at the Osmaston
End, bringing capacity to 38,000.
The Baseball Ground was redeveloped further in 1969 with the Popular Side, increasing
attendance again, and the same year the record attendance was also broke for the stadium
as 41,826 people packed in for a game against Tottenham Hotspur.
Early 1990s saw the new requirement of all-seater stadiums needed, which brought capacity down
to 18,300.
Plans were made in February 1996 to build a new stadium, and Derby moved on to Pride
Park Stadium in 1997.
The last game for Derby County played at the Baseball Ground was a 3-1 loss to Arsenal
on 11 May 1997.
While the stadium still had its uses, particularly for Derby reserves until it was sold on to
property developers in 2003 and demolished to make way for housing.
Råsunda Stadium
Built in 1937 after the old stadium had become too small, the Råsunda opened on 18 April
1937 for a game between AIK and Malmö FF, in a 4-0 win for AIK.
Axel Nilsson scored the first ever goal at the stadium.
The stadium was home to AIK as well as the Sweden national team, before it was demolished
in 2013.
The 1958 FIFA World Cup saw the stadium expanded to a capacity of over 50,000, while the stadium
hosted five group games, a quarter-final, semi-final, and final.
The final saw heartbreak for Sweden in their own backyard as Brazil demolished them 5-2
in front of 49,737 people.
The stadium hosted another three group matches, this time for the Euro 1992 Championships,
and the stadium proved unlucky for Sweden once again as Germany defeated them 3-2 in
the semi-final here.
By the mid 1990s, the stadium needed to be modernised and the owner of the stadium, The
Swedish FA, decided to build a new one which was opened in October 2012.
Demolition of Råsunda finished in 2013, being replaced by apartment buildings.
Stadionul Steaua
Familiarly known as Ghencea, the stadium was officially opened on 9 April 1974 in a friendly
between Steaua and OFK Belgrade, a 2-2 draw.
The first goal scored at the stadium was by Gheorghe Tătaru.
The stadium served as the home of Steaua Bucureşti as well as the Romania national team.
30,000 people could fit on the benches, but in 1991 seats were added, reducing that number
to 28,365.
It underwent renovations in 1996 that included adequate seating in the stands, and again
in 2006 to become eligible to host Champions League matches.
Steaua Bucureşti (FCSB) made a permanent relocation to the Arena Nationala in 2015,
but they still had plans to replace Stadionul Steaua with a new stadium.
After Stadional Steaua was demolished in 2018, work on a new 31,254 seater stadium began,
which opened on 7 July 2021, with the inaugural game similarly between Steaua and OFK Belgrade.
Stadion Dziesięciolecia
Opened in 1955, the stadium was for decades one of the largest in Poland, despite not
being used much at all.
Originally having a capacity of 71,000, the stadium hosted the Poland national team from
1955-1983, when it started to deteriorate.
It was an Olympic style stadium containing a running track, which hosted athletics events,
as well as galas, concerts, and festivals.
Due to technical problems, the stadium was subsequently abandoned in 1983, and in 1989,
it was turned into an outdoor market known as Jamark Europa.
Demolition took place in September 2008 with the new Stadion Narodowy built in its place
to become one of the venues for Euro 2012.
Lebak Bulus Stadium
Built in Jakarta, Indonesia, the stadium first opened in 1987, but club football wasn’t
played here until 1998 when Persija Jakarta moved in until 2007.
Beyond that the stadium held Group F matches for the AFC U-17 Championship Qualifcation,
as well as SEA Games Group B matches at the 2011 tournament.
In its early days, Metallica performed here in 1993, with an attendance of 40,000, despite
only having a capacity of 12,500.
The concert is infamous for its rioting and looting.
It was demolished in 2013 for the Jakarta Mass Rapid Transit system to build a new depot.