Madejski Stadium

Infobox Stadium
stadium_name = Madejski Stadium
nickname = The Mad Stad


fullname =
location = Reading, England
coordinates = coord|51|25|20.32|N|0|58|57.50|W|type:landmark|display=inline,title
broke_ground =
built =
opened = 22 August 1998
renovated =
expanded =
closed =
demolished =
owner = RFC Holdings Ltd
operator =
surface = Desso GrassMaster
construction_cost = >£50m
architect =
structural engineer =
services engineer =
general_contractor =
project_manager =
main_contractors =
former_names =
tenants = Reading F.C. (1998–present)
Richmond F.C. (1998–1999)
London Irish (2000–present)
seating_capacity = 24,161
dimensions = 105 m x 68 mcite news | date=2007-07-02 | url=http://www.readingfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/News/NewsDetail/0,,10306~1065220,00.html | title=Stadium pitch has been lengthened | work=readingfc.co.uk | accessdate=2007-07-02] The Madejski Stadium is a football stadium in Reading, Berkshire, England.

Overview

The stadium is the home of Reading Football Club and was opened on 22 August 1998 when Luton Town were beaten 3-0 with Grant Brebner having the honour of scoring the first goal at the stadium. The rugby union club, London Irish, also play their home games there as tenants, although London is some 40 miles to the east. It also provides the finish for the Reading Half Marathon.

It is an all-seater bowl stadium with a capacity of 24,250 and is located close to the M4 motorway. It was built on the site of a former household waste dump and the stadium is surrounded by methane vents. The stadium cost more than £50m to build and the pitch incorporates a system of synthetic fibres interwoven with natural grass, installed at a cost of more than £750,000. The site used to be a landfill, and Reading Borough Council sold the land to the club for £1.Fact|date=October 2007

The stadium is named after Reading's chairman John Madejski but it is owned by the football club.

For the first time in their history, Reading Football Club participated in the Premier League in the 2006-07 season. As a result of the sell-out crowds for their first few fixtures of the season, the club announced their intention, in October 2006 [cite news | date=2006-09-21 | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/r/reading/5366880.stm | title=Royals ready to extend Madejski | publisher=BBC Sport | accessdate=2007-01-28] , to make a planning application to extend the ground to between 37,000 to 38,000 seats. The application was made on 24 January 2007, proposing initially the extension of the East Stand with a further 6,000 seats (raising capacity to around 30,000) and subsequently extension of the North and South Stands to reach the full proposed capacity. [cite press release |title=Plans for stadium expansion will be submitted to the Council later this week |publisher=Reading F.C. |date=2007-01-22 |url=http://www.readingfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/News/NewsDetail/0,,10306~968826,00.html |accessdate=2007-01-28] On Thursday 24th May 2007 it was announced that planning permission had been granted to extend the stadium to a capacity of 36,900. [cite news | date=2007-05-23 | url=http://www.reading.gov.uk/Documents/Committee_Services/Planning_Applications_Committee/-2007-2008/070523/item23-madejskistadium.pdf | title=Committee Report by the Director of Environment Culture & Sport | publisher=Reading Borough Council Planning Applications Committee | accessdate=2007-05-31] The first phase will expand the East Stand by 6,600 seats. Work was set to start in mid 2008, after the initial plan of extending in 2007 was scrapped due to spectator seats being affected, during the work, already being sold to season ticket holders. Work will not happen in summer 2008, to extend the stadium, due to Reading's second season in the Premiership not being as good as the first, and so there has been a fall in attendances..

* Ground improvements at English football Stadia

tands

North Stand

Home end stand.

outh Stand

The South Stand has a capacity up to 2,327 for away fans. For the Premier League season 2006-07, half of the South Stand (that which meets the East Stand) is designated for away supporters, whilst the half which meets the West Stand is for ticket-only home supporters. For cup games, away fans are usually allocated the whole stand.

East Stand

Opposite the tunnel and director's box. This stand also has the majority of the singing supporters.

West Stand

This stand contains a lower and an upper tier, but the upper level does not overhang the lower tier. Executive boxes are found between the two tiers. The tunnel and dugouts are on this side of the stadium.

The outside of the stand contains the Millennium Madejski Hotel.

Attendance

FAPL

Average:
*2006-07: 23,829

Total:
*2006-07: 452758 - Ranked #14 in Premier LeagueHighest:
*2006-07: 24,135 - 19th of January, 2008 vs Manchester United

Guinness Premiership

Highest
*2007-08: 23,709 - 16th of March, 2008 vs London Wasps [ [http://www.london-irish.com/News/Sold_Out!_Premiership_Attendance_Record_Falls_Again.html london-irish.com 15th of March, 2008: Sold out!] ]

Rugby Supporters

On 11 January 2008 it was announced that London Irish reached an agreement to continue playing home games at the Madejski Stadium until 2026. Irish have seen their average crowds grow to more than 11,100 since moving to Reading in 2000, holding the record for the biggest Premiership attendance at a club ground, when 23,709 people saw Irish play Wasps on March 16, 2008. [cite news | date=2008-01-11 | url=http://www.skysports.com/rugbyunion/match_report/0,20244,11069_2849984,00.html]

References

External links

* [http://www.readingfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/Stadium/ Stadium information] from Reading FC official website