NFR - Favourite stadium that's not the Cottage

[aFFCn_Fan]

So with nothing better to do on a Good Friday I've managed to find the Crystal Palace v Brum game on (good to see Dikgacoi still playing)...and it brought back memories of a trip to Selhurst park. Got me thinking, what's your favourite stadium and why (apart from the Cottage obviously)?

BTW Selhurst Park isn't mine. I'll start the ball rolling - the Emirates, because the only time I've been was in the same year as the new Wembley opened (late and massively over budget) and the Emirates seemed to have better facilities, have been completed on time and had compfier seating.

[SKSW6]

Purely for the ground, Villa Park's up there for me, although Villa is probably my least favourite away day.

[Fletchino]

Benfica stadium of light went there for euro 2004 brilliant ground.
Basel is a nice stadium too.

[cmg]

Ho, ho. This sort of thread makes me feel sooooo old because all my favourite stadia are mostly now luxury flats or Asdas. So Highbury (which would definitely have been my choice), The (old) Den, Bradford Park Avenue and Feethams are ruled out.
I'll therefore go for The Boleyn while I can.

As we are allowed to be flash, then I'd say that the Stadio Olimpico in Rome is rather nice.

[sipwell]

I'll have to go with the stadium of my Belgian club, Union Saint Gilloise. Built in the 1920s, it is still a pearl in the Belgian football stadia (well, it does not have any competition really). It is on the side of a big park in Brussels and during summertime you watch football and trees...








Google it: Stade Joseph Marien!

[vbg cottager]

I'll have to go with the stadium of my Belgian club, Union Saint Gilloise. Built in the 1920s, it is still a pearl in the Belgian football stadia (well, it does not have any competition really). It is on the side of a big park in Brussels and during summertime you watch football and trees...








Google it: Stade Joseph Marien!

this is the best stadium I've ever seen! a part from the cottage ;)
although the two grounds seem to look similar from the outside..

another great stadium I have to mention is the den. been there last year for the game vs palace... the atmosphere even when you walk to the ground is like you imagine a working class club!

[cmg]

I'll have to go with the stadium of my Belgian club, Union Saint Gilloise. Built in the 1920s, it is still a pearl in the Belgian football stadia (well, it does not have any competition really). It is on the side of a big park in Brussels and during summertime you watch football and trees...



Google it: Stade Joseph Marien!

That's a superb stand facade. A well-known architect? Sort of late Arts & Crafts meets early Art Deco. I've just taken a stroll along the Chaussee Bruxelles (on Google Earth), there seems to be a touch of English there - 'Supporter Shop', 'Club House', even a Whitbread pub sign hiding behind a wall.

[A Humble Man]

 Love the Emirates fantastic viewing ground and easy to get in and out of.

[jmh]

I'll have to go with the stadium of my Belgian club, Union Saint Gilloise. Built in the 1920s, it is still a pearl in the Belgian football stadia (well, it does not have any competition really). It is on the side of a big park in Brussels and during summertime you watch football and trees...








Google it: Stade Joseph Marien!

That's pretty cool.  Like the Cottage minus the river.

[Burt]

When I was a kid I went to Celtic Park and that kind of left an impression on me.

I enjoyed my first trip to St James, when we beat the toon 4-1, back in the mid 80s. A bit of a hostile atmosphere, and a famous old ground.

[mouse]

Showing my age but I'm going to plump for the old Den.It was so crap it was good???

[The Equalizer]

As more modern grounds go, you could do a lot worse than the Stade Louis II in Monaco:



It's a pretty tiny ground, but is built on top of an olympic size swimming pool and a car park, and the arches on one end of the ground were put in place so the the prince could watch matches from the comfort of his own palace!

It was damaged by an explosion in May 2004. Airfix, was this your work? We were only there a few weeks before!

[sipwell]

I'll have to go with the stadium of my Belgian club, Union Saint Gilloise. Built in the 1920s, it is still a pearl in the Belgian football stadia (well, it does not have any competition really). It is on the side of a big park in Brussels and during summertime you watch football and trees...



Google it: Stade Joseph Marien!

That's a superb stand facade. A well-known architect? Sort of late Arts & Crafts meets early Art Deco. I've just taken a stroll along the Chaussee Bruxelles (on Google Earth), there seems to be a touch of English there - 'Supporter Shop', 'Club House', even a Whitbread pub sign hiding behind a wall.

It is Art Deco style. The architect is not that well known outside of Belgium. As for the use of English, football is originally an English sport, is it not? You have to respect traditions :)

[Holders]

St James' Park (Exeter City) reminds me of and feels like the Cottage used to before the seats.

But there'll only ever be one Craven Cottage, seats or no.

[Vinnieffc]

It would have to be the Olympic Stadium in Berlin (home of Hertha BSC) but before the rebuild as a typical sole less bowl.. It was open but still atmospheric - unlike the bloody team !!  :012:

[Scrumpy]

I love a traditional football ground, not one of these new souless bowls. So it has to be a ground that has been there for at least 100 years!

Either The Hawthorns or Goodison Park for me. They both ooze history and can create an amazing atmosphere when the fans get behind their team.

For an away 'trip', it would probably be Norwich.

[MJG]

Its a bit like numerous other modern grounds, but Bolton is always a good view.
Agree with Norwich as a decent away day/weekend and decent atmosphere.
For facilities it has to be Arsenal.
Newcastle is good when your doing training for an ascent of Everest.

[Stefano Okaka Chuka]

Of all the stadiums I have seen it is a coin toss between Brisbane Road, a proper british stadium with loads of character, and White Hart Lane, as I saw there my first english game and the atmosphere is always cracking there...A special mention for Celtic Park, Selhurst Park and Underhill...

[HatterDon]

In the early 70s, when I used to read The Jimmy Hill Football Weekly regularly, there was a questionnaire where first division footballers of the day would answer a pre-set series of questions. One of the questions was "Which is your favorite 'other' ground?" The three most popular answers were 3. Villa Park, 2. Old Trafford, and 1. Hillsborough. In those days Wednesday was a top flight club and the ground was known for its pitch of unparalleled quality and its incredible atmosphere. First came the "disaster" and then relegation, but at the time, all the footballers loved that ground, as did the fans.

[A Humble Man]

I love a traditional football ground, not one of these new souless bowls. So it has to be a ground that has been there for at least 100 years!

Either The Hawthorns or Goodison Park for me. They both ooze history and can create an amazing atmosphere when the fans get behind their team.

For an away 'trip', it would probably be Norwich.

Bit of a Prince Charles like generalisation, everything new is soulless and ugly and everything old charming and beautiful.  That is of course the sort of nonsense the Royal Family has be spouting for thousands of years that their loyal subjects have to believe or else.