Wembley Stadium is Britain’s best-loved sporting venue with almost two-thirds voting for iconic ‘Home of Football’ ahead of Lord’s, Wimbledon, Twickenham and Silverstone… with Man United’s Old Trafford ranking higher than Liverpool’s Anfield!
- Survey saw 63 per cent of sports fans say Wembley Stadium is one of Britain’s iconic sporting venues
- Home of England national team finished considerably higher than Lord’s, Twickenham and Wimbledon
- Manchester United’s home, Old Trafford, was the most loved club stadium in the country among sports fans
- Liverpool’s Anfield, Newcastle’s St James’ Park and Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge also feature in the top 25 list
- Survey also revealed the habits of sports fan forced to stay at home during the Covid-19 lockdown
- A fifth bought in pies, sausage rolls and pasties to replicate the stadiums experience while watching on TV
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Wembley Stadium is the country’s best-loved sports venue, according to a new survey, with a resounding 63 per cent considering the ‘Home of Football’ one of Britain’s iconic landmarks.
The 90,000-capacity home of the England national team and venue for all football’s domestic cup finals is also the most visited sporting venue in the country with almost half the sport-loving population having made a pilgrimage there.
41 per cent of sports fans rated Lord’s cricket ground as a venue they loved, closely followed by Wimbledon with 40 per cent, Twickenham on 36 per cent and Silverstone on 32 per cent.
Wembley Stadium – the home of the England football team – has been voted Britain’s most loved sporting venue by fans
63 per cent of sports fans surveyed selected the ‘Home of Football’ as one of their best-loved sporting venues in the country
Lord’s cricket ground was second in the ranking of the country’s best-loved sports stadiums with 42 per cent choosing it
Manchester United’s Old Trafford home was the highest-ranked club stadium with 32 per cent of those surveyed voting for it, placing it higher than Liverpool’s Anfield ground (25 per cent).
Newcastle United’s St James’ Park (14 per cent) and Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge (13 per cent) also made the top 25, along with famous racing venues Ascot and Aintree, snooker’s Crucible theatre, St Andrew’s golf course and cricket grounds The Oval, Edgbaston, Headingley and Trent Bridge.
TABASCO sauce commissioned the survey of 2,004 British sports fans, who were asked to tick all the venues they liked on the list.
Wimbledon was cancelled this year because of the Covid-19 pandemic but Centre Court remains high in the nation’s affection
Sports fans across the country were asked to select which stadiums and venues they liked best in the recent
And nearly two-thirds went for Wembley, which re-opened its doors in 2007 following a complete rebuild of the original stadium that dated back to 1923. The enormous arch has since become a feature of the north London skyline.
The poll also sheds light on how sports fans have coped with the unprecedented situation of being unable to attend sports events during the Covid-19 pandemic this year.
Most stadiums have remained closed to spectators since the first lockdown began back in March though there was a glimmer of hope for a return to normality this week.
Twickenham, the home of the England rugby team, packed for the rafters for this year’s Six Nations game with Ireland
Manchester United fans will relish the prospect of a return to Old Trafford with recent games played behind closed doors
Liverpool fans on The Kop at Anfield, which ranked 12th in the survey of Britain’s best-loved sporting venues
Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that up to 4,000 fans could return to outdoor venues in tier one and tier two areas of England when the current lockdown ends on December 2.
In the meantime, it appears coping mechanisms have involved stocking up on the same food fans would normally enjoy in the stands at home.
21 per cent of those asked have bought in match day pies to heat up and eat at home, with the same amount going for sausage rolls and 18 per cent for pasties.
In all 60 per cent have tried to recreate the matchday experience by buying food, with 58 per cent going for pizza, 40 per cent for fish and 38 per cent for a Chinese.