| Contents |
What's
The Stadium Of Light Like?
Future Stadium
Developments
External
View (photo)
What
Is It Like For Away Supporters?
North
And East Stands (photo)
Where To
Drink?
Looking
Towards The North Stand (photo)
How
To Get There By Car And Where To Park
West Stand (photo)
By Train And
Metro
By Air
Local Rivals
Admission
Prices
Ground
Layout
Fixtures 2012-2013
Programme & Fanzines
Disabled Facilities
Record & Average Attendance
Fans Ground Reviews
Stadium
Of Light Tours
Roker Park
Hotel Accommodation
Stadium
Of Light Location Map
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| What's
The Stadium Of Light Like? |
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The
Club moved to the stadium in 1997,
after leaving their former home
of Roker Park where
they had played for 99 years. The stadium
is of a good size, is totally enclosed and on the whole is quite
impressive. It is composed of two three
tiered stands (at the North end and the West side of
the pitch), whilst the others are two tiered. The
West (Main) Stand on one side also has a row of
executive boxes (which you can sit outside if you
wish), that are situated just below the top tier.
Currently, with half the stadium being larger than
the other, it looks a little imbalanced, when
looking from the away section in the South Stand.
However, if at some point the Club were to add an
additional tier to the two remaining sides, then an
even more remarkable stadium would emerge. There is also a large
electronic scoreboard perched upon the roof at
either end.
Outside the stadium there is a
statue of former FA Cup winning manager Bob
Stokoe, as well as some reminders of the
former Wearmouth Colliery,
on the site of which the stadium was built. Behind
the West Stand there is a large red
wheel, an emblem of the lifts that used to
take the miners down to the mines. Also outside
one corner of the stadium is a large miners
lamp. If you feel a little mischievous, then
ask the nearest Sunderland fan whether it is a
Geordie Lamp. Don't worry you won't get any
physical abuse, just a long lecture that the lamp
is in fact a Davy lamp!
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| Future Stadium
Developments |
Kevin
Davis informs me; 'The club have secured
planning permission to add another 7,200
to the Metro FM (South) Stand, which would take the
capacity to 55,000. The club have not yet confirmed
when (if ever) they will
go ahead with this. If the club then proceed after this to add another tier
to the McEwans Stand the the final capacity would be around 64,000'.
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External View
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| What
Is It Like For Away Supporters? |
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Away fans are now
housed in the Upper Tier of the North Stand at one
end of the stadium, where around 3,000 fans can be
housed. Although
the facilities are fine in this area, you do have to
climb a large number of flights of stairs to reach
this top tier. It almost feels if this area has been
'tucked in' under the stadium roof, as it comes down
over this section. It means that if you are sitting
towards the back of the tier, then although you can
see the pitch, you get a limited view of the
majority of the rest of the stadium, giving the
feeling of being a bit cut off from it all. On
the food and drink front, then the club offer;
Fish & Chips (£5.50), Various Pies
(£2.50) including the Chicken Balti Pie,
Pizza Pods (£2.50), Cornish Pasties
(£2), Jumbo Sausage Rolls (£2).
Alcohol is available in the form of Fosters
(£3.10), Strongbow (£3.10) and
John Smiths (£2.90). The Club also offer
2 Pies & 2 Pints for £10 (well
that's me sorted, where's yours?).
When
people ask me which grounds are 'the best' to
visit, then Sunderland inevitably comes out as
one of my top five recommendations. On its day
the place can be rocking, the PA system
deafening (especially when the classical piece
'Dance Of The Knights' from Prokofiev's 'Romeo
& Juliet' is played before the players come
on to the pitch at the start of the game and U2's 'Elevation',
as the teams come out of the tunnel) and the
Sunderland supporters exceptionally friendly (I
was even given a Sunderland shirt by one
supporter!). But bear in mind you are not
allowed to swear inside the stadium, so if you
persist you may find yourself being ejected from
the ground!
For cup games where there is a larger
allocation of tickets available (up to 7,000) then
away fans will revert back to being housed in the
South Stand for those matches.
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North And East
Stands
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| Where To
Drink? |
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Stephen
Lundell informs me; ‘There are two social clubs; the
Sunderland Companions club, and the New Democratic
Club, both on North Bridge Street (the road
approaching the Wearmouth Bridge), which are about a
five minute walk away form the stadium. Although
they get very busy they do welcome away supporters,
and serve reasonably priced beer'. Whilst Jason Adderley a visiting West
Brom fan adds; ''The Albion
pub, on Victor Street, off Roker Avenue, is a five
minute walk from the ground, with some parking
nearby. I've used this pub the last three
times I've visited Sunderland with West
Brom. Always friendly and the landlord even
puts on complimentary snacks after the game.
Otherwise there is a chippy a couple of doors
away. An all round top boozer'.
If you have a bit
of time of your hands, then you may like to try
the Harbour View on the sea front, which is
around a 15-20 minute walk away. Simply go along
Roker Avenue (opposite the main entrance to the
stadium) until you reach the seafront. Turn left
along the front and you will see the pub up on
the left. The pub which is listed in the CAMRA
Good Beer Guide, serves good beer, reasonably
priced food (with its own matchday menu) and has
a large screen television. As the name of the
pub suggests you get some good views along the
coast from its location.
Otherwise you are not that far from the city
centre where there are plenty of pubs to be
found. My pick would be the William Jameson (a
Wetherspoons pub) on Fawcett Street, for a drink
before or after the game, as it has a great
atmosphere. Alcohol is also available inside the
stadium.
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Looking
Towards The North Stand
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| How
To Get There By Car And Where To Park |
Exit the A1 at Junction 62, the
Durham/Sunderland exit and take the A690 towards
Sunderland. After about eight miles, you will reach a roundabout, at
which turn left onto the A19, signposted
for the Tyne Tunnel. Stay in the left hand lane
and take the second slip
road towards Sunderland
(signposted Stadium Of Light, A1231 Sunderland).
This takes you onto a
bridge crossing over
the River Wear. Turn right onto the A1231
following the signs for Sunderland. Go straight
over four roundabouts into Sunderland.
Then go through two sets
of traffic lights (keeping in the
left hand lane at the second set, going straight on
towards Roker rather than the city centre) and
you will see the Stadium car park on your right, about
a mile after the traffic lights. However there is only
limited parking at the ground. You can park at the
Stadium of Light
Metro Station (cost £4) or
alternatively, you can park in the city centre and
walk to the ground (about 10-15 minutes). The traffic
for a couple of miles around the ground was solid when
I went so allow plenty of time for your journey.
There is also a 'Park & Ride' scheme in operation
on matchdays, free for both home and away supporters.
This is situated at Sunderland Enterprise Park, which
is well signposted just off the A1231. Buses run every
five minutes, for 90 minutes before kick off and
continue after the game until everyone has gone.
Map showing the location of the
Stadium Of Light (at the bottom of this page).
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West
Stand
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| By Train And Metro |
Sunderland railway station in
the city centre is walkable from the stadium (around
15 minutes). Paul Duck informs me; 'You will exit the
station opposite Greggs. Turn right out of
the station heading up towards a JJB Sports store
and walk through the gap between JJB and a nail
bar to the right of JJB. Keep walking straight ahead
and within 100m you will see the Stadium Of Light
rising up in front of you over the Wearmouth Bridge'.
Simply cross the bridge, and turn left into Millennium
Way, opposite the now closed Wheatsheaf pub. The
away turnstiles are located on the side of the ground
which is straight ahead.
Ashley Smith adds; "The Metro
stations called the 'Stadium
of Light' and 'St. Peters' both serve
the stadium. The metro provides regular and rapid
transport from both Newcastle and the South of
Sunderland. Both stations are only a few minutes walk
from the stadium, although away supporters should
alight at St Peters Station as that is closer to their
entrance. This provides an alternative to the regular
rail services. Please note though that after the game
the Stadium of Light metro station only operates
Northbound (i.e. towards Newcastle) and St Peters
metro station only operates Southbound (i.e. towards
Sunderland centre). Michael Freanch a visiting
Birmingham City fan informs me; 'If you are going into
Newcastle after the match then then it may be an
idea to walk walk into the centre of Sunderland (10-15
minutes walk) and get metro from
there. You will get a seat and also
avoid the large crowds at the Stadium of Light
station'.
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| By Air |
The nearest airport is
Newcastle which is located 24 miles away. However the
journey is pretty straightforward as both the Stadium
Of Light and Newcastle Airport are both served by the
Metro transit system. There are frequent departures to
Sunderland and the journey time is just under an hour.
|
| Local Rivals |
| Newcastle United,
Middlesbrough.
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| Admission
Prices |
Sunderland operate a two
category system of ticket pricing (A,
B & C) whereby the most popular matches
cost more to watch than the least popular ones.
Category A Games: Adults £32-£40
Category B Games:
Adults £27-£35
Category C Games:
Adults £25-£30
Concessions are also available to Over 65's, Under
22's & Under 16's.
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| Stadium
Layout |
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For a
stadium plan showing the individual block numbers
then visit the official Sunderland Sunderland
Football Club website.
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| Fixtures 2012-2013 |
| Sunderland
fixture list
(takes you to the BBC Sports
Website).
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| Programme and Fanzines |
Red & White Review
Official Programme £3
A Love Supreme Fanzine £2.50
Sex & Chocolate Fanzine £1.50
The Wearside Roar Fanzine (TWR) £2
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| Disabled
Facilities |
| For details of disabled
facilities and club contact at the ground please
visit the relevant page on the Level
Playing Field website.
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| Record
& Average Attendance |
Record Attendance:
At The Stadium Of Light:
48,353 v Liverpool,
Premier League, April 13th, 2002.
At Roker Park;
75,118 v Derby County,
FA Cup 6th Round Replay, March 8th, 1933.
Average Attendance:
2011-2012: 39,095 (Premier League)
2010-2011: 40,011 (Premier League)
2009-2010: 40,355 (Premier League)
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| Fans
Reviews Of The Stadium Of Light |
|
Chris
Harding (Chelsea) 24/05/09
Mike
Davis (Crystal Palace) 30/1/07
David
Wallace (Stoke City) 8/5/05
Martin
Hart (Visiting Scottish Fan) 30/10/04
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Stadium Of Light Tours
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The Club offer
daily tours of the stadium, except on matchdays.
These cost £10 for adults and £5 for
concessions. A family ticket (2 adults + 2 children)
is also available at £25. For tour times and
availability ring the tour hotline on 0871 911 1224.
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| Roker Park |
To see some photos of
Sunderland's previous ground Roker Park then visit the Old Grounds & Stands
Section of the Guide.
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| Hotel
Accommodation |
If you require hotel
accommodation in the area then first try a hotel
booking service provided by Late
Rooms. They offer all types of
accommodation to suit all tastes and pockets from;
Budget Hotels, Traditional Bed &
Breakfast establishments to Five Star Hotels and
Serviced Apartments. Plus their booking system is
straightforward and easy to use. Yes this site
will earn a small commission if you book through
them, but it will go to help with the running
costs of keeping the Guide going. The Hotels
listing includes details of how far they are away
from the Stadium Of Light.
Access
their Sunderland
Hotels and Guest Houses page.
Remember that you
can also use the above link or the panel
below to book any other hotels that you
may need for business or leisure, either
in the UK or abroad.
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Of Page
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| Map
showing the location of the Stadium Of
Light, Stations and Listed Pubs |
|
Instructions
for using the map:
- Use the bar on the left of the map to zoom in /
out using the + / - keys.
- Click and drag an area of the map to move around
or use the up/down, left/right arrows
- Click the Satellite button to see aerial view
photograph.
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| Feedback |
If
anything is incorrect or you have something to add,
please e-mail me duncan@footballgrounds.net
and I'll update the guide.
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