Cledara Abbey Stadium
Capacity | 8 127 |
---|---|
4,376 (Seats) | |
Country | England |
City | Cambridge |
Clubs | Cambridge United FC |
Inauguration | 31/08/1932 (Cambridge United FC - Cambridge University Press) |
Renovations | 1934, 1954, 1970, 2002 |
Record attendance | 14,000 (Cambridge United FC - Chelsea FC, 01.05.1970) |
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Abbey Stadium – stadium description
This Cambridge-based stadium was donated to United in 1931 along with a grandstand accommodating players (not opened until 1934) by Henry Francis and has since been the home of CUFC.
Since 1934 it was gradually improved until finally being a fully enclosed ground in 1954. In 1970 floodlights were first lit and the club played Chelsea to celebrate it, drawing largest ever crowd of 14,000.
In 1990s United had a chance to win Premier League promotion spot, but instead went down by four tiers, thus losing any hope for stadium improvement. Officials refused to installed the recommended plastic seats all around the ground, arguing they would only do that when advancing to a league requiring such facilities.
In 2004 further financial trouble caused the club to sell Abbey Stadium to a private entity. Despite attempts by fans to buy it back, the ground still doesn't formally belong to United.
How Abbey Stadium compares to other League One venues?
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