Ewood Park

Ewood Park stands in Blackburn, Lancashire, as the home ground of Blackburn Rovers Football Club. The stadium occupies a site where football has been played since at least 1881, when it was known as Ewood Bridge. In 1882 the ground was officially opened and soon hosted football, athletics and greyhound racing. The club moved in permanently in 1890 and bought the freehold three years later for £2,500. Part of a stand collapsed under a crowd of 20,000 in 1893, leading to later rebuilding. By the early 20th century the ground had a 12,000-capacity stand with a roof and a new main stand designed by Archibald Leitch. The stadium’s history includes a 1913 suffragette attempt to burn down the grandstand. In 1984 a fire in the Blackburn End corner led to redevelopment with executive boxes and a lounge. The Riverside Stand, built in 1913 and rebuilt in 1988 after a safety check, once held over 70,000 spectators. Floodlights were installed in 1958 and first used in a friendly against Werder Bremen. The ground’s largest recorded crowd was 62,522 for a match against Bolton Wanderers in 1929. Today Ewood Park is an all-seater stadium with four stands. The Jack Walker Stand contains dressing rooms, media facilities and hospitality suites including Jack’s Kitchen. The Ronnie Clayton Blackburn End houses the club shop, ticket office and a memorial garden with a statue of Jack Walker. The Riverside Stand, the oldest part of the modern ground, displays the word ‘ROVERS’ in its seating. The Bryan Douglas Darwen End completes the square, named after the nearby town.